Iran’s missile program does not breach UN resolution: Foreign Ministry

Iran’s missile program is defensive in nature and not in violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2231, says the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

“The issue of the Iranian missile [program] is an entirely defensive and deterrent matter and in no way contravenes Resolution 2231,” said Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi in his weekly press briefing on Monday.

Such claims, Qassemi said in his Monday presser, were “unwarranted” and were “often made because of... [the accusers’] ill will toward Iran’s might, particularly its defensive power.”

Responding to a question about the potential violations of the nuclear deal by the US, Qassemi said Iranian decisions on whether violations had occurred rested with the high-level Supervisory Board that has been formed to monitor the implementation of the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

He said decisions in that regard were technical and the Supervisory Board would be making relevant comments in the due time.

Iran and the P5+1 countries (Russia, the US, the UK, China, Britain, and France) reached the JCPOA on July 14, 2015 and began implementing it in January 2016.

Iran has been complaining that the US, under the administration of its new president, has been seeking to sabotage international trade with Iran. This is while according to the deal, the US must “refrain from any policy specifically intended to directly and adversely affect the normalisation of trade and economic relations with Iran.”

The US has also imposed sanctions on Iran over the country’s missile activities, including most recently on July 28.

Qassemi said that Iran and the US harbored mistrust of one another and that the recent measures adopted by Washington further deepened Tehran’s mistrust.

‘Iran not delaying Saudi delegation's visit’

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman also rejected media reports that Iran has been behind a delay in the planned trip by a Saudi Arabian delegation to the country to visit the sites of Saudi Arabia’s former diplomatic perimeters.

He said visas had been issued for the Saudi delegates long before, and they were scheduled to arrive on a private jet. A permit had been issued for the flight at short notice but the Saudis could not be immediately notified because there were no direct communication channels, hence the delay, Qassemi said.

“They can travel to Tehran whenever they decide to,” he said of the Saudi delegates. “There is no prohibition on their visit.”

Iran, in the meanwhile, was awaiting the issuance of visas for its own delegation, which he said was due shortly.

SS