(CLO) Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that the country needs to continue developing its military, including missiles, after US President Donald Trump threatened to use force if Iran refuses to negotiate over its nuclear program.
"The process should not stop, we cannot be satisfied with the present. If we previously set limits on the accuracy of our missiles, now we need to move forward," Mr. Khamenei stressed. He also affirmed that Iran's defense power was widely known and made enemies afraid.
Tehran says its missile program is defensive in nature, but Western nations see it as a destabilizing factor in the region.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves during a meeting in Tehran last December. Photo: Office of the Supreme Leader of Iran
The remarks came after Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, criticised Mr Trump's statements, in which the US president said he wanted to reach a deal to stop developing nuclear weapons rather than bomb Iran.
Last week, Mr. Trump reintroduced a policy of “maximum pressure,” including efforts to cut Iran’s oil exports, to force the country to sign a deal limiting its nuclear program. Western powers suspect Iran is developing nuclear weapons, although Iran has always denied this and insisted that it only wants to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has questioned the US's sincerity in negotiating while sanctions remain in place. Ambassador Iravani has written to the UN Security Council, criticizing Mr Trump's policy as "reinforcing unilateral coercive measures and increasing hostility towards Iran".
Iran is now accelerating uranium enrichment to 60% purity, close to the 90% weapons-grade level, while continuing to develop military technologies such as drone aircraft carriers and underground naval bases.
Ngoc Anh (according to Tehran Times, AJ, Reuters)
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/iran-tuyen-bo-phat-trien-quan-doi-sau-loi-de-doa-su-dung-vu-luc-cua-my-post334217.html
Comment (0)