When it comes to U.S.-Iranian relations, it is as simple as a game of cat and mouse; specifically, the iconic American cartoon characters Tom and Jerry, according to Iran's highest authority.
The message within the Hanna-Barbera classic is recurring: while the tomcat (Tom), with its superior strength and size, might toy with the mouse, it is the clever and plucky mouse (Jerry) that always comes out on top.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei invoked the two rivals while addressing a gathering on May 23 amid increased tensions after Washington pulled out of the nuclear deal agreed between Iran and world powers in 2015.
"The U.S. has committed all kinds of animosity to hit the Islamic Republic and has plotted various political, economic, military and propaganda schemes" since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Khamenei said. "All their plots have failed -- just like Tom from the well-known Tom and Jerry cartoon -- and they will fail again in the future."