TEHRAN – An Iranian general said on Sunday the chances of a conflictbreaking out in the Gulf region have decreased, after a spate of hostileacts in the key waterway.

“At first glance, it may seem that the situation in the Persian Gulf isheading towards a military conflict but when studying the situation moredeeply, we see that chances for such a conflict become less probable,” saidBrig Gen Ahmadreza Pourdastan.

“All countries which have interests in the region are by no means willingto see a new crisis in the Middle East,” he said, quoted by *Mehr* newsagency.

“The military capabilities of our armed forces are to such an extent thatthe enemies don’t dare go for a military option against us.

“The Persian Gulf is like a tinderbox and explosion of the firstfirecracker can lead to a huge disaster,” the general said.

Tensions between arch-enemies Iran and the United States have soared thisyear after Washington stepped up its “maximum pressure” campaign againstTehran.

Ships have been attacked, drones downed and oil tankers seized since May,after the US withdrew from a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and worldpowers and reimposed biting sanctions against the country.

At the height of the crisis, US President Donald Trump called off airstrikes against Iran at the last minute in June after the Islamicrepublic’s forces shot down a US drone. -APP/AFP