Former MI6 chief Sir Alex Younger has stated that Iran is currently in a strategically advantageous position in its ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel. In an interview with The Economist podcast published on March 25, 2026, Younger said the United States failed to properly assess the complexity of the war and lost the initiative to Iran about two weeks earlier.

He explained that Iran has shown greater resilience than expected, having taken early steps to disperse its military assets and decentralize decision-making on weapons use. These measures, according to Younger, have strengthened Iran’s defensive capacity even under heavy airstrikes.

Younger also noted that some remarks by former US President Donald Trump reinforced Iran’s perception of the conflict as a “civilizational” or “existential” struggle. The comments were reported by Middle East Eye.