Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on March 2, 2026, that Iran will determine the conclusion of the ongoing war, which he attributed to initiation by the United States and Israel. Araghchi cited two decades of studying U.S. military failures in Iraq and Afghanistan as informing Iran's strategy, asserting that bombing the capital has no impact on their war-fighting capabilities due to a decentralized "mosaic defense." Concurrently, Turkey has reportedly halted individual crossings of Iranian citizens into its territory, with only Turkish citizens being permitted entry at official land checkpoints, while urging its citizens in Iran to stay in safe areas due to the sensitive security situation.