Iran Needs No Permission to Boost Defense Power, DM Says

General Dehqan told the state television on Wednesday that Iran “has never had and will never have an aggressive approach” toward any nation and country, but will make use of every tool at its disposal in the face of enemies’ threats.

Emphasizing that the Islamic Republic has never sought “unconventional weapons” in its defense doctrine despite what the West is trying to assert, he said Tehran needs “no permission” to enhance its defense might.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian defense minister referred to a joint letter sent earlier by US, Britain, France, and Germany to the UN over the Islamic Republic’s missile launches, and stressed, “They (missile tests) are neither in breach of the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) nor the resolution 2231".

On Tuesday, the US and its European allies sent a joint letter to Spain's UN Ambassador Roman Oyarzun Marchesi and UN Chief Ban Ki-moon, claiming that the Islamic Republic’s recent missile launches were "inconsistent with" and "in defiance of" the resolution 2231.

On July 20, 2015, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2231, which bars Iran from developing missiles “designed to carry nuclear warheads.”

This is while Iran has repeatedly announced that test of missiles is an issue relating to defense of its territorial integrity and that none of its missiles are designed to carry nuclear weapons.

On March 9, the country’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) forces test-fired two types of Qadr ballistic missiles during the large-scale drills, codenamed “Might of Velayat”.

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.

According to reports, Qadr-H missile has a range of 1,700 kilometers while Qadr-F missile can destroy targets some 2,000 kilometers away.