The political scientist pointed to Iran's ability to respond harshly to Israeli strikes.

Iran has every opportunity to respond to Israeli attacks. Igor Nikulin, a political scientist and former member of the United Nations (UN) Disarmament Commission, told Izvestia on June 13.

"Iran has everything it needs to inflict a crushing defeat on Israel. But, again, only if America does not participate in this case. I think it's unlikely that defeating Israel is part of [US President Donald]'s plans. Trump," he said.

According to the expert, if the Iranian side decides to launch a full-fledged strike, Israel will suffer a lot of damage.

One step before the war: Israel attacked Iran

The targets were the country's nuclear facilities

Israel launched a preemptive strike on Iran and declared a state of emergency across the country earlier in the day. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the purpose of the military operation is to attack Iran's nuclear infrastructure, as well as ballistic missile factories. He called the beginning of the operation a success.

The Russian Foreign Ministry condemned Israel's unprovoked attack and pointed out that the state violated the UN Charter with its move. In turn, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also noted that the Russian Federation is concerned and condemns the sharp escalation of tension between Israel and Iran.