Must Prepare to Fight U.S., Iranian Says

NICOSIA, Cyprus — Iranian Parliament Speaker Hashemi Rafsanjani said Friday that Iran must prepare to fight America in the Persian Gulf. He warned Arab states that his nation will attack any bases and ports they let the Americans use.

Iranian Prime Minister Hussein Moussavi was quoted as saying: “We will use our forces against the superpowers if they conspire against us. They’re completely mistaken if they think they will not fall into the fire they are fanning for us. It will engulf them all.”

Both the Americans and Soviets have pledged they will uphold freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf.

Rafsanjani said chances were remote of Iran and America clashing, but he warned that “a wounded snake (the United States) can still sting.”

Veiled Reference

The “wounded” reference apparently stemmed from U.S. congressional opposition to President Reagan’s moves to intervene in the gulf and the marked reluctance of Washington’s European allies to support U.S. efforts to keep gulf oil routes open.

The Iran-Iraq War, begun in September, 1980, spread to gulf waters in 1984. About 20% of the non-communist world’s oil passes through the gulf.

Rafsanjani’s remarks in a Friday prayer sermon at Tehran University were broadcast by state-run Iranian television, monitored in Nicosia.

Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency, also monitored in Nicosia, quoted remarks made by the prime minister in Veramin, south of Tehran.

Claims Force Reduced

Rafsanjani claimed that since the Iraqi air attack on the U.S. guided missile frigate Stark on May 17, in which 37 Americans sailors died, the United States and the Soviet Union have reduced their naval presence in the gulf. Iraq has said the attack was accidental.

The Soviets reportedly ordered in three minesweepers to reinforce two warships patrolling the gulf’s sealanes.

U.S. officials said the U.S. Navy will deploy three more surface ships in the gulf to bolster the six-ship task force now there to ensure freedom of navigation.

“They don’t dare bring their warships very close,” Rafsanjani gibed. “They just get out of the Strait (of Hormuz), move around a little and then turn back. They’re taking the dangers seriously.”

The Strait of Hormuz at the southern end of the gulf is the only gateway to the waterway. Iran this year deployed Chinese-built HY-2 Silkworm anti-ship missiles there, a move the Americans charge is a threat to shipping.

Says Washington Isolated

Rafsanjani claimed that Washington is isolated and that its allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Arab gulf states condemned superpower moves in the region.