‘Any US infringement of Iran’s territorial waters will draw a tough response’

Iran’s Armed Forces has warned that the United States is sure to be dealt a more severe blow than before if it takes the slightest action against the Islamic Republic’s interests, including its territorial waters.

Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi, the chief spokesman of the Iranian armed forces,  described US President Donald Trump’s threats to shoot Iranian boats if they approached American forces as merely “statements within the framework of psychological warfare and confuse public opinion to strengthen his balance in the upcoming elections and to escape from internal issues in his country.

For his part, Hossein Naqawi Hosseini, spokesman for the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Iranian Islamic Shura Council, said that Americans have no right to interfere with  the nuclear agreement or comment on Iran’s activities such as launching satellites or testing weapons, noting that Americans also have no right to express views on the dates established in the agreement because they are no longer from the signatory countries.

Rouhani: The Gulf is an important waterway for the countries of the world and not a monopoly of Washington

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in his Wednesday remarks in a cabinet meeting, addressed the US saying that “this gulf’s name is the Persian Gulf not the gulf of New York or Washington gulf.”

“The US must stop applying its conspiracy plots against the Iranian nation who has its name on this gulf and has protected it in history,” Rouhani said.

Elsewhere, in his remarks, he addressed Iran’s capability in coping with the coronavirus.

The Iranian President said that Iran has been able to complete a social distancing scheme and then smart distancing scheme to curb the virus spread. The country has been able to commence exports of anti-coronavirus products, he added.

Rouhani called for adherence to medical instructions to reduce the occurrence of injuries, especially as there is still no medicine or vaccine to prevent it, noting that Iran has made remarkable achievements in addressing the Corona pandemic.

Haifaa Mafalani