Iran’s Missile Program Not in Conflict with JCPOA

Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari vehemently rejected claims raised by some Western media that the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ (IRGC) recent missile drills were in breach of the July 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers, also known as the JCPOA.

“Weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, have no place in the Islamic Republic of Iran’s ideological principles and defense doctrine,” Jaberi Ansari said on Thursday.

He further emphasized that none of Iran’s missiles, including those recently test-fired in the military drills staged by the IRGC forces, have been designed to be capable of carrying nuclear warheads.

“Therefore, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s missile program is not in conflict with the items defined in United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 and its annexes,” the spokesman noted.

The IRGC forces test-fired two types of Qadr ballistic missiles during ‘Might of Velayat’ drills in north of Iran on Wednesday morning.

The two ballistic missiles, Qadr-H and Qadr-F, were launched from the heights of East Alborz Mountains, north of Iran, and hit targets on the Makran coasts, southeast of the country.

The projectiles streaked along Iran’s airspace for some 1,400 kilometers before hitting the targets.

Iran has repeatedly announced that test of missiles is an issue relating to defense of its territorial integrity and has nothing to do with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the nuclear deal reached between Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) back in July 2015.

Iran has also underscored frequently that its military might poses no threat to other countries and that the Islamic Republic’s defense doctrine is entirely based on deterrence.