India, Aug. 15 -- Iran has sharply criticized US foreign policy toward Tehran and the broader Middle East, accusing Washington of deep self-deception and an extreme reliance on "lies". Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei issued the critique on August 15, 2026, amid intense regional friction. He invoked a famous passage from Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic novel The Brothers Karamazov to describe the current state of US governance and regional strategy: "The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to such a pass that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others."

Strategic Drivers behind the Dispute

The heated rhetorical escalation stems from on...