Top Security Official: Tehran to Further Bolster Missile Power, US Never Dares to Attack Iran

Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani brushed aside any possibility for the country to negotiate on its missile power, stressing Tehran's intention to further strengthen its capabilities in this arena.

News ID: 70338

Date: 24 May 2018 - 17:05

TEHRAN (Defapress)- Shamkhani  reiterated that the country’s missile program is non-negotiable and the Islamic Republic continues to strengthen its defensive capabilities.

Shamkhani said along with its missile program, Iran will also keep supporting resistance groups in the region.

“We will continue our support for Hamas, Islamic Jihad Movement, Hezbollah and the axis of resistance in the region,” he said.

Touching on the situation in Yemen and Saudi Arabia’s acts of sabotage, he said while Yemen’s Ansarullah Movement welcomed Europe’s call for a ceasefire in the Arab country during the holy month of Ramadan, Saudi Arabia rejected it.

Shamkhani also referred to the currently severed ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and said Tehran is ready for constructive and reasonable talks with Saudi Arabia without any preconditions.

He also dismissed the latest threats by the US officials against Iran, saying that the US doesn’t have the guts to wage a military war on Iran and its efforts to slap further economic sanctions on Iran will end up in failure.

Shamkhani also reacted to the statements by some Russian official calling for the withdrawal of Iranian and Hezbollah forces from Syria, and said the Islamic Republic will never leave Syria because its presence is at the request of the Syrian government.

On the possible adventurism of the US in the region, Shamkhani said Iran will give a direct and immediate crushing response to any aggression by the US.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he also referred to the latest violence by the Zionist regime against Syria and the Arab country’s response to the military aggression, and said the Zionist regime has received a clear message that any act of violence would be faced with direct and crushing response.

In relevant remarks on Wednesday, Shamkhani underlined that his country would never renegotiate the 2015 nuclear deal, adding that Tehran would revise cooperation with the Europeans if they fail to defend interests of both sides.

"The international nuclear agreement has specified how Iran's nuclear program should continue and the closed case of Iran's nuclear negotiations will not reopen in any conditions," Shamkhani said in response to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's Monday remarks against Iran's nuclear program.

On Monday morning, Pompeo gave a speech at the Heritage Foundation in Washington: "After the Deal: A New Iran Strategy." Over 26 minutes, Pompeo articulated a strategy that can best be summarized as, "Do everything we say, or we will crush you", days after the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal.

Meantime, Shamkhani described the negotiations between Iran and the European states on implementation of the nuclear deal after the US withdrawal as a test for Europe to prove their independence against the US dictated policies, and said if they cannot or do not want to defend their and the Islamic Republic's interests against the illegal and irrational approaches of Trump then "continued cooperation with them is useless".

He referred to the US officials' allegations against Iran's peaceful nuclear activities, and said Washington which has used atomic bombs against the Japanese people and has equipped the child-killer Israeli regime with such weapons, is not competent to opine on Iran's nuclear program.

Elsewhere, Shamkhani referred to Pompeo's demand from Iran to free the US nationals imprisoned in the country, and said that tens of Iranian nationals and citizens of other countries have been taken hostage in the US for baseless allegations and Washington does not respond to their demands for reviewing their cases.

He also pointed to Iran's advisory role in Iraq and Syria, saying that Tehran is helping the two countries in the fight against terrorism.

Shamkhani, meantime, asked the reason for the increased number of the US forces in Iraq and Syria despite Trump's promises during his presidential campaign to withdraw them.

He underlined that what Pompeo said within the framework of a new strategy against Iran was nothing new and "only present just a combination of Trump's wishes and dreams".

US President Donald Trump announced on May 8 that the US would no longer remain part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and promised to re-impose the highest level of economic sanctions against Iran in response to Tehran's development of its nuclear program.

After Trump's declaration, the Iranian government issued a statement, calling the US withdrawal as "unlawful". The statement underlined Iran's prerequisites for continuing the deal with the five world powers after the US pullout of the agreement.

"Iran, as a country that has remained committed to its legal obligations, will pursue the US Government’s decision to withdraw from the JCPOA as provided by the mechanisms and provisions of the accord, and if the US withdrawal is not fully compensated and the full interests of the Iranian people are not met and guaranteed – as stated in the accord and as outlined by Iran’s Leader on 9 May – it will exercise its legal right to take whatever reciprocal measures it deems expedient. Other parties to the JCPOA, and especially its three European signatories, must take necessary action to safeguard the accord and to implement their commitments – which they proved incapable of fully performing even while the US was nominally a party to the deal, due to the obstructions by the Trump Administration – and to proceed from giving pledges to taking practical action without any preconditions," it said.

"None of the provisions or timeframes within the JCPOA, which were the subject of twelve years of negotiations, are negotiable in any manner. The US, which has through its meddling and erroneous policies ignited extremism, terrorism, destruction, war and child killing in our region, is in no position to issue any diktat about the Islamic Republic of Iran’s lawful presence within its own region nor its effective support for the peoples of Syria and Iraq in their endeavor to fight extremists. The US and its allies, which through their support for the regime of Saddam Hussein, including equipping it with chemical weapons and the most advanced military equipment while blocking Iran’s access to any means of defense victimized the Iranian people for eight years, and currently turning our region into a powder keg through their sale of hundreds of billions of dollars of useless advanced weaponry devouring the financial resources of the region, are in no position to impose restrictions on the Islamic Republic of Iran’s lawful means of defense, including defensive ballistic missiles which have been designed to carry conventional weapons based on the bitter experiences of the war with the regime of Saddam Hussein. Indeed, such efforts explicitly violate the principles of international law, and the Islamic Republic of Iran’s legitimate right to self-defense under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter," it added.

"As announced by the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran on 8 May, the Foreign Minister has been tasked with the duty of taking the necessary measures to obtain required guarantees from the remaining parties to the JCPOA as well as Iran’s other economic partners, and to immediately report the results of this mission. Meanwhile, the President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran has been tasked with taking all necessary steps in preparation for Iran to pursue industrial-scale enrichment without any restrictions, using the results of the latest research and development of Iran’s brave nuclear scientists."

"The people of Iran will with calm and confidence continue their path towards progress and development and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has foreseen all necessary measures to facilitate this under any circumstances," the statement continued.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran, as a secure and powerful state, which derives its security and economic development from within, relying on the prudent participation and resilience of its brave and civilized people, seeks constructive and dignified engagement with the world, and as shown by its implementation of the JCPOA despite the United States’ continuous violations, is a trustworthy and committed partner for all who are prepared to cooperate on the basis of shared interests and mutual respect," it reiterated.

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