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Iran’s army chief said here Monday that Iran’s advanced missile power is “defensive and non-negotiable,” semi-official Mehr news agency reported. Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri said that despite the continuing plots and threats from the enemies since decades ago, the Islamic republic has been able to defend borders and to overcome terrorism. Baqeri called for more deterrent progress and readiness to thwart emerging security threats by some powers and their regional allies, including Israel, against Iran. On May 10, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Iran would increase its missile capability despite the enemies’ propaganda against it. The U.S. officials have said Iran’s ballistic missile launches are threats to the U.S. interests in the world. The Iranian officials unanimously called the missile tests “inalienable right” of the country to boost deterrent power. On Monday, Baqeri also touched upon the threat to the integrity of Iran’s neighbors and said that at the time when the Iraqi army have defeated the Islamic State (IS) militants, talking of an independence referendum of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region would cause new problems and challenges in the region. He also denounced the presence of trans-regional powers in the region, saying that “regional countries possess the capacity to resolve problems and disagreements without the need for interfering trans-regional hegemonic powers.” (XinhuaNet) |