Iran’s defense minister vows to continue missile program

By Azernews

By Ali Mustafayev

Tehran is not willing to give up on its missile program and seeks to continue developing it despite concerns of Washington and tense relations between the two countries.

Iran's newly-appointed Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said that the Islamic Republic will continue its missile program.

Hatami declared the intention to continue the missile program immediately after taking the office. The statement was made during the first cabinet meeting of the newly-formed government on August 20, IRNA reported.

 “We will firmly stick to our defense industry and will not allow a day of delay in defense ministry's mission,” Hatami said.

Iran's defense program is compatible with indigenous defense and will not be affected by any kind of pressure, the minister added.

 The development of missiles in Iran has been repeatedly criticized by the United States. In early 2017, the U.S. imposed a round of sanctions against Iran after the country carried out a medium-range ballistic missile tests.

The Trump administration even promised to review the deal on the Iranian nuclear program signed in 2015, which eventually led to lifting of Western economic sanctions.

In early August, Washington imposed another round of sanctions against Iranian defense officials and an entity over the continued development of ballistic missiles.

In a response, the Iranian Parliament approved a bill on allocation of funds for the development of its missile program. The bill mandates the government to allocate an additional $520 million for the development of the missile program.

Speaker of the Parliament Ali Larijani, commenting on the document, said that the bill seeks to counter the terrorist and adventurous actions of the U.S. in the region.

However, the U.S. government states that the nuclear potential of Iran is still not clear, and the Comprehensive Plan of Action accepted in Vienna in 2015 just delays Iran’s coming into being a nuclear power, and Tehran’s nuclear ambitions may be potentially dangerous for the universal peace and security.

Tehran refuses accusations and argues that Iran’s missile program is not part of a 2015 nuclear deal between his country and world powers.