Iran allows no country to decide on its missile program: Defence Minister

Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan says the Islamic Republic will not allow any country to make decisions on its missile program.

“Iran’s missile program has nothing to do with the US and other countries and no country is allowed to decide for the Islamic Republic’s missile program,” Dehqan told reporters on Monday, Press TV reported.

He added that some countries are using the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed last July’s nuclear agreement reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as a pretext to take measures against Iran’s missile program.

Dehqan emphasized that the fuss made over Iran’s missile tests is merely part of the propaganda campaign in the US ahead of the country’s presidential election in November.

“Such fault-finding is also a response to the demands of the Zionist regime (of Israel) and reactionary Arab governments led by Saudi Arabia,” the Iranian defense minister said.

It has been proven to different countries that the Iranian nation acts in accordance with its interests and will pay the necessary price for them, he added.

“The Islamic establishment determines its own national security and interests and will make decisions on how to defend its national security,” Dehqan said, emphasizing that Iran will equip and prepare itself in accordance with potential threats and accepts no limitations in this regard.

The Iranian defense minister made the remarks after United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said earlier in July that Iran's ballistic missile launches “are not consistent with the constructive spirit” of the JCPOA.

"I call upon Iran to refrain from conducting such ballistic missile launches since they have the potential to increase tensions in the region," the UN chief wrote in his first biannual report to the 15-member Security Council.

Iran has warned that it can restore all those aspects of its nuclear program that it has agreed to limit under the JCPOA if it is violated by the six countries.

SS