Foreign Ministry: Iran's Missile Program Has No Relation to the JCPOA

The spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, reacting to a statement from the Group of Seven industrialized nations meeting in Italy, reiterated that the Islamic Republic's missile program is "in no way" related to the Vienna nuclear agreement, known as the JCPOA. This official also emphasized that Iran's missile tests are not "in violation" of UN Security Council Resolution 2231. According to the state news agency IRNA, Bahram Qasemi, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson, stated on Wednesday evening, April 23, that the Islamic Republic is "aware of its responsibility to enhance its defensive capabilities to safeguard national security and promote regional peace and stability, regardless of the misunderstandings of Western parties regarding the nature of the missile program." He stressed that Iran's "defensive" missile program "has no connection to the JCPOA, and the nature and design of Iran's ballistic missiles are such that Iran's missile tests do not contradict Security Council Resolution 2231." Qasemi also referred to the G7 statement regarding the necessity for all parties to adhere to the Vienna nuclear agreement, stating that Iran has fulfilled all its commitments under this agreement according to reports from the International Atomic Energy Agency. He emphasized that Iran's "natural, legitimate, and legal expectation is that other parties also fulfill their JCPOA obligations in both practical behavior and political positions, including in the area of lifting sanctions." The G7, in its final statement from the meeting in Italy, described Iran's ballistic missile tests as contrary to UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and expressed "strong dissatisfaction" with these actions. According to Resolution 2231, Iran must refrain from developing ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads for eight years. Tehran claims that its missiles are not designed to carry nuclear warheads, thus its missile tests do not violate the JCPOA or Resolution 2231. In contrast, American officials have stated that Iran's missile tests are in violation of Resolution 2231. Consequently, the U.S. imposed sanctions in March 2017 and April 2023 on 25 Iranian individuals and entities and 30 foreign individuals and entities for their involvement in Iran's missile program. In a reciprocal move, Iran's Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday, April 6, that it would sanction 15 American companies for cooperating with Israel. Iranian Foreign Ministry officials have previously described the imposition of new sanctions against Iran's missile program as contrary to the "spirit" of the Vienna nuclear agreement. The G7 includes the U.S., Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Japan, and Italy, and their meeting took place on Monday and Tuesday with representatives from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, and Qatar. Iran and Russia were absent from this meeting; however, Russian media report that the foreign ministers of Iran, Syria, and Russia will meet in Moscow this week. The countries present at the meeting on Tuesday rejected Britain's request to increase sanctions against Russia for its support of Bashar al-Assad, but at the same time urged Russia to pressure the Syrian government to end the six-year civil war. In their final statement, these countries called for investigations by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to determine which side was responsible for the "war crime" in Khan Sheikhoun instead of escalating sanctions against Russia. Meanwhile, the Italian Foreign Minister spoke on Wednesday in a phone call with Iran's Foreign Minister about the discussions and resolutions of this meeting. According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Mohammad Javad Zarif deemed the U.S. attack on a Syrian airbase as "unacceptable," called the accusation of Bashar al-Assad's forces using chemical weapons "baseless," and emphasized the need to "form a fact-finding committee to investigate the perpetrators of this tragedy and prevent its recurrence." The U.S. holds the Assad government responsible for the recent chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun, while the Syrian government has denied this accusation, and Assad's allies have also rejected the U.S. claim.