Addressing a large and fervent congregation of the people on
Tehran University campus on Friday, Ayatollah Khatami said, "We stage missile
drills and it shows our might."
"We are living in the world of wolves; wolves like the arrogant US
administration," he added.
Ayatollah Khatami underlined that given the US threats against Iran, the country
is compelled to advance its missile and defense programs to defend the nation.
His remarks came after US criticism of Iran's recent missile tests which was
responded by the high-ranking Iranian officials.
Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani
underlined his country's continued progress and advancement in its defense and
missile program, saying that the country is strongly opposed to foreign
interference.
"We will not take permission from any country or international organization to
develop our conventional defense power and we will confront any foreign
interference in the defense affairs, including the Islamic Republic of Iran's
missile power," Shamkhani said in a meeting with Armenian Defense Minister Vigen
Sargsyan in Tehran on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, he blasted the western countries for their attempts to use sanctions
to restrict the countries which are victims of terrorism, including Iran and
Syria, and the West's support for terrorist groups.
"The Takfiri armed groups which are supported by certain regional states
intellectually and financially beside the Zionist regime are two main threats to
global security and unfortunately, the paper coalitions (those which have merely
been formed on paper and take no practical measures) have not had any defensible
performance in controlling these threats," Shamkhani said.
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan confirmed on Wednesday
that his country has tested a missile recently, describing it as part of Iran's
defense programs.
"The recent test was in line with our programs and we don’t allow any foreign
party to interfere in our defense affairs," General Dehqan told reporters in
Tehran in reaction to the recent UN Security Council meeting on Iran's missile
test.
He underscored that the missile test "contradicts neither the nuclear deal
(between Iran and the world powers signed in 2015) nor the Resolution 2231".
source: fars news agency