Iranian army says its military doctrine shifting from 'defensive to offensive'

The Iranian army said Saturday that its military doctrine is shifting from a "defensive to an offensive" posture, citing lessons from the country's recent wars.

Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia, spokesman for the Iranian army, told state news agency IRNA that the shift had gradually taken place during what he described as the 12-day and 40-day wars.

"Our country's military doctrine was defensive in the past, but gradually during these two wars, we witnessed the military doctrine moving from a defensive posture toward an offensive one," Akraminia said.

He said the shift was reflected in rapid and broader responses to attacks as well as preemptive operations.

Akraminia said the army had devised a plan offering rewards for killing or capturing US troops in the event of a ground incursion into Iranian territory.

Under the plan, members of the armed forces or civilians legally possessing hunting weapons would receive 5 billion tomans (about $26,000) for killing or capturing US troops entering Iran, he said.

The reward would be doubled to 10 billion tomans (about $53,000) if the action were carried out by a woman, Akraminia added.

He said the army would also purchase the weapon used for twice its value, preserve it in a military museum under the owner's name and provide the individual with a similar replacement weapon.

Akraminia also claimed that US influence in the region had declined sharply, pointing to what he described as a defense and security mechanism established by Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan independently of Washington.

He said that regardless of its future effectiveness, the mechanism demonstrated what he called the decline of the US position in the region and described it as the first regional defense and security mechanism without US participation.