Iran’s Military Purchases from Russia Have Nothing to Do with JCPOA: Commander

Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency, Brigadier General Jazayeri denounced the US propaganda campaign against the growing military ties between Iran and Russia, saying that Washington regards every measure that Tehran takes against the US will as a breach of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“The JCPOA is only about nuclear (issues) and all should try not to be influenced by the US statements, because they make efforts to portray every move (by Iran) as a violation of the JCPOA and other agreements” he noted.

The commander further emphasized that the country’s Armed Forces have taken special precautions in this regard and if necessary, consultations will be held with the foreign ministry.

Earlier on February 17, Russian media reported that Moscow will this year sign a contract to sell a batch of its Sukhoi Su-30SM multi-role fighters to Iran.

One day later, US State Department Spokesman Mark Toner reacted to Russia's decision and said “UN Security Council Resolution 2231 prohibits the sale to Iran of specified categories of conventional arms ... without approval in advance on a case-by-case basis by the UN Security Council.”

Toner said all UN members, and especially those such as Russia that negotiated the resolution as part of the nuclear deal, "should be fully aware of these restrictions."

In response, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said UN Resolution 2231 does not prohibit arms sales to Iran, stressing that Moscow sees no direct limit on expansion of its arms and military cooperation with Iran.

Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14, 2015 finalized a comprehensive deal on Tehran’s nuclear program and implemented it on January 16.

The comprehensive nuclear deal, the JCPOA, terminated all nuclear-related sanctions on Iran after coming into force.