Rouhani: Tehran won't abandon missiles that 'make America angry'
Iran's president issues warning to US following Mike Pompeo's threats against Islamic republic, vowing to preserve its long-range missiles arsenal capable of reaching United States; Rouhani's speech came shortly before 25 people were killed during military parade he was attending.
However Rouhani’s speech was cut short as the military parade he was attending had been attacked by several gunmen, who killed 25 people—most of whom were members of the country’s Revolutionary Guards.
“Iran will not abandon its defensive weapons ... including its missiles that make America so angry,” Rouhani said in his speech.
"US President Donald Trump will fail in his confrontation with Iran just like Iraq’s Saddam Hussein," Iran's president asserted.
As Rouhani spoke, Iran began displaying its naval power in the Gulf during annual parades in the capital Tehran and the port of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf.
State media said about 600 vessels took part in the Gulf naval drill on Saturday, a day after Iran held aerial exercises in the waterway, vowing that a “pounding reply” awaited the country’s enemies.
In an interview with CNN, Pompeo threatened Iran saying, "We won't let Iran get away with using a proxy force to attack an American interest. Iran will be hold accountable for these incidents," following the attack on the US Embassy in Iraq which was carried out by Iran-backed militias.
The White House said the Shi'ite militias were behind the attack. However, it stressed Iran did not do enough to prevent it.
In response to Pompeo's threat, Iran's Foreign Affairs Ministry said that the Trump administration is destabilizing global peace.
In an opinion article published by Rouhani in the Washington Post in the wake of the United Nations Security Council discussion regarding the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) next week headed by US President Donald Trump, Iran's president attempted to convey an appeasing message, writing that "peace is our arsenal."
In the article, Rouhani stated that "Iran is keeping its nuclear commitments and is committed to talks and dialogue—despite Trump."
He went on to say that "Modern history attests to the fact that Iran has not engaged in any external aggression during the past 250 years. It has, however, fiercely resisted foreign aggression and intervention. Peace is our arsenal."
The Iranian leader's opinion article addressed Trump's May 8 announcement that the US is pulling out of the 2015 nuclear accord.
"I faced two options on May 8, when President Trump announced the United States’ official withdrawal from the nuclear agreement with Iran, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
"I could have reciprocated and announced Iran’s withdrawal, which was certain to throw the region into further insecurity and instability. Or I could have considered a short grace period for the remaining parties to compensate for the adverse effects of the United States’ decision on the valuable accord that had been achieved after 12 years of tough, intensive negotiations. In keeping with our tradition of respect for the rule of law and norms of international law, and to safeguard peace and security in the region, I opted for the latter," Rouhani elaborated.
According to the newspaper, the Islamic republic's president argued that US planned to conspire against it.
"The United States expected a hasty Iranian withdrawal so that it could easily forge an international alliance against Iran and automatically revive previous sanctions.
"Our action, instead, thwarted such a move. The talks with the remaining JCPOA participants, and their reiteration of compliance with the accord, placed the United States in a lonely position. Such a serious chasm between the United States and its European partners on a critical foreign policy matter was unique and unprecedented—which, I can say, proved that we were right in our approach to the nuclear deal and our proactive diplomacy," he stressed.
"Trump’s offer of direct talks with Iran is not honest or genuine. How can we be convinced of his sincerity while his secretary of state has gone so far as to set a long list of openly insulting pre-conditions for talks?" he wondered.
"I am confident that the US government will have to change course once again. Regardless, our talks with our trading partners are well underway, promising a bright future for our international interactions. It has now become crystal clear that most countries in the world oppose US unilateralism and abhor being bullied," Rouhani elucidated in the article.
Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Friday that the administration of US President Donald Trump was a threat to the Middle East and to the global community.
"It is true that there is a real threat to our region and to international peace and security: that threat is the Trump administration's sense of entitlement to destabilize the world along with rogue accomplices in our region," Zarif said. "The US must start acting like a normal state."
During the past few months, the United States has been vigorously working to weaken Iran, mainly by imposing economic sanctions on it.
At the beginning of the month, Iran's currency hit a new low. Prominent Japanese oil companies are preparing to halt crude oil import from Iran amid US sanctions and concerns that doing business with it will affect them as well.
