Abas Aslani, senior researcher at the Tehran-based Middle East Strategic Studies Center, says Iran is seeking to repair ties with Gulf neighbors despite launching a series of attacks on their territory. He says Tehran is pursuing diplomatic, negotiated channels and has sought to limit the scope and scale of responses to US actions; Western misreading of Iranian flexibility as weakness could be interpreted as a red carpet for further attacks. Aslani adds Iranian officials have held consultations

Abas Aslani, senior researcher at the Tehran-based Middle East Strategic Studies Center, says Iran is seeking to repair ties with Gulf neighbors despite launching a series of attacks on their territory. He says Tehran is pursuing diplomatic, negotiated channels and has sought to limit the scope and scale of responses to US actions; Western misreading of Iranian flexibility as weakness could be interpreted as a red carpet for further attacks. Aslani adds Iranian officials have held consultations with regional counterparts to mend relations, a process Israel and the United States oppose as they seek to sow division between Iran and its neighbors.