Iran's Reaction to New Sanctions: Missile Program Does Not Violate Resolutions

On Thursday, April 5, the Iranian Foreign Ministry reacted negatively to the new sanctions imposed by the United States, stating that Iran's missile program "is not related to the JCPOA and does not violate UN Security Council Resolution 2231." Just hours before this reaction, the U.S. Treasury Department blacklisted two Iranian companies for supporting Iran's missile program and also sanctioned four other companies and two British traders for assisting Mahan Airlines, which is accused of collaborating with the IRGC. According to Reuters, the U.S. also sanctioned "Shahid Nouri Industries" and "Shahid Mohahed Industries," which are subsidiaries of the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group, accused by Washington of being the main entity linked to Iran's ballistic missile program. Hossein Jaberi Ansari, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, emphasized in response to these unilateral U.S. sanctions that Iran's missile program "has completely defensive objectives" and is among the "legitimate and legal rights" of the Islamic Republic. According to Mr. Jaberi Ansari, the only outcome of such actions by the United States will be "contributing to instability in the region and the world." The new U.S. sanctions were imposed after the IRGC recently conducted several long-range missile tests, which faced widespread reactions and criticisms from the international community. These global reactions intensified after a senior IRGC official specifically mentioned that the primary target of Iran's long-range missiles is intended to be Israel. However, the news of these sanctions comes at a time when some diplomats at the United Nations align with the Iranian Foreign Ministry's response, meaning that Iran's missile program is not actually a violation of Resolution 2231. These diplomats in the UN Security Council recently stated that the body cannot legally punish Iran for its recent missile tests, but can only hold the Islamic Republic accountable. The mentioned diplomats noted in a report published by Reuters on Thursday, March 17, that the possibility of punishing Iran for these tests is weak, as the ambiguous language of the Security Council resolution regarding Iran closes the door to that and allows for alternative interpretations.