Neither US nor Europe Can Lecture Iran on Its Missile Program - Zarif

By Staff, Agencies

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said neither the United States nor its European allies, with their ‘flimsy’ misreading of the landmark nuclear deal of 2015, are allowed to ‘lecture’ the Islamic Republic on its missile program.

“US has been bullying all against UNSC Resolution 2231 since 2017. Europe obeyed US instead of 2231,” Zarif said in a posting on Twitter on Friday.

“Neither the United States nor Europe can lecture Iran based on flimsy misreadings of Resolution 2231,” he added.

Zarif further stated that "Iran neither has nukes nor missiles 'DESIGNED to be capable of carrying' such horrific arms."

He attached a number of images and screenshot photos of documents and newspapers about the significance of nuclear weapons and the budget allocated to the construction of nuclear warheads by the US and some European countries and questioned who is in fact proliferating nukes and violating international resolutions.

Zarif's tweet came in response to allegations leveled by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who claimed on Wednesday that "Iran needs to be held accountable for" the launch of a military satellite, adding that the action was not consistent with the Security Council Resolution 2231.

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps [IRGC] successfully placed the Islamic Republic’s first ever military satellite, dubbed Noor-1 [Light], in its designated orbit on April 22, using a rocket which is also the country’s first three-stage launch vehicle to successfully deliver its load.

The IRGC fired the Noor-1 aboard Qased [Carrier] satellite carrier during an operation that was staged in Dasht-e Kavir, Iran’s sprawling central desert, which was placed into the orbit 425 kilometers above Earth’s surface.

The Noor-1, although Iran’s fifth homegrown satellite to successfully reach outer space, marks a new chapter in the country’s space program, which relies heavily on technologies that are designed and developed at home.

Speaking at a briefing on Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova dismissed as “baseless” claims by Pompeo that the launch violates the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA], and the UN Resolution 2231.

"This would not be the first time that a nation that has flagrantly breached the norms of international law and violated UNSC resolution 2231 is trying to deflect international condemnation by baselessly accusing Iran of noncompliance with the requirements of the Security Council," Zakharova said.

Iran has time and again made it clear that it has no plans to develop nuclear weapons or missiles capable of delivering such warheads, the main initiative behind the nuclear deal it clinched with the P5+1 group of countries, the United States, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany.