Iran's military commanders said on Wednesday that the Islamic republic was on the verge of an all-out confrontation with its enemies and was ready to counter any threat.
"Iran has the highest level of defense-military preparedness to confront any type of threat and excessive demands," Defense Minister Amir Hatami was quoted as saying by the Islamic Republic News Agency.
He said Iran would defeat a U.S. and Israel alliance.
The United States has sent additional military forces to the Middle East, including an aircraft carrier, B-52 bombers and Patriot missiles, in a show of force against what U.S. officials say are Iranian threats to its troops and interests in the region.
The commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said: "We are on the cusp of a full-scale confrontation with the enemy," the Fars news agency reported.
Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, named head of the force last month, added: "This moment in history, because the enemy has stepped into the field of confrontation with us with all the possible capacity, is the most decisive moment of the Islamic revolution."
Separately on Wednesday, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran was ready for any possible scenario from "confrontation to diplomacy" but the U.S. could not afford another war in the Middle East.
On Wednesday, Washington ordered non-emergency government employees stationed in Iraq to leave the region over repeated concerns about danger posed by Iranian-backed forces.
Israel will stand with the United States to confront Iran, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.
"We are united in our desire to stop Iranian aggression," he said. "Israel and all the countries of the region and all the countries who seek peace in the world should stand together with the United States against Iranian aggression."
