It is not clear why Iranian politicians are looking for more headaches with the United States. While no one is threatening Iran’s national security, President Hassan Rouhani — apparently angry about the currency crisis in Iran, and the heightened potential for an explosion of public anger over the collapsing economy and high inflation — suddenly opened verbal fire on the US. He threatened “the mother of all wars” if the Trump administration maintained its harsh economic sanctions against Iran. Finally, Iranians had a taste of Donald Trump’s famous Twitter diplomacy. He tweeted back to Rouhani, advising him never to threaten the US, again, or Iran would “suffer consequences the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered before.” The odour of confrontation rose in the region, and worried Iranians, who were already concerned over Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and the return of sanctions. But confrontation with the US is a function of the diplomacy being pursued by the Iranian regime, not by the Iranian people. Maybe the regime is looking for a new headache to conceal its mismanagement, systematic corruption and lack of legitimacy. In such a critical situation, appealing to the public’s nationalistic sentiments is often the best tool for the totalitarian regime to survive. Interestingly, however, the public reaction in Iran was not one of support for confronting Trump; instead, anger against the system increased. With Rouhani having failed to provoke the Iranian public against the US, it was the turn of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, commander of the elite Quds Force, to write to President Trump - it did not make Iranians proud, only more upset. Camelia Entekhabifard With Rouhani having failed to provoke the Iranian public against the US, it was the turn of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, commander of the elite Quds Force, to write to President Trump. “As a soldier, it is my duty to respond to your threats,” he wrote. “If you want to use the language of threat, talk to me, not to the president. It is beneath our president’s dignity to respond to you.” Far from making Iranians proud, Rouhani’s remarks and Soleimani’s letter made them more upset. Simply, Iranians have lost their trust in the current system and are seeking fundamental change. It is probably too late for Rouhani or anyone else in the regime to fix the problems, but it is also too soon for them to realize they have to give power back to the people to choose the type of the government they want. Iranians no longer care whether it is Trump’s policy to talk the clerics into a better nuclear deal, or block their financial resources with tough sanctions to curb their regional meddling. Instead, they are looking for their own path to make the necessary changes in Iran, with or without anyone’s support. Maybe years ago such a letter from the commander of the Quds Force to the US President could have persuaded the public to admire his patriotism — but not today, when Iranians see so many of his soldiers fighting for Assad in Syria, or alongside Hezbollah. People are asking why their wealth has been squandered on the regional ambitions of the regime and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The myth that the US may attack Iran is an old trick that no longer fools anyone. Neither the Iranian people nor anyone else in the region wants another war; they understand that the consequences would reach far beyond Iran’s borders, and would draw the whole Middle East into a conflagration. No one on this planet hopes for war — except perhaps the Iranian regime, who see it as a survival option. And interestingly, issuing threats to the US has brought about a sudden unification between the “moderate” government of Rouhani and the extremists in the military. Each needs the other to survive, and they know it. Camelia Entekhabifard is an Iranian-American journalist, political commentator and author of Camelia: Save Yourself By Telling the Truth (Seven Stories Press, 2008). Twitter: @CameliaFard​ Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Arab News" point-of-view