Valiati's Response to France: We Do Not Seek Permission from Others for Our Defense Program

Following the comments made by the French President regarding Iran's behavior in the Middle East, the senior advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic accused this French official of 'interfering in Iran's affairs' on Saturday, November 18. Ali Akbar Velayati, a member of the Expediency Council and advisor to Ayatollah Khamenei, stated in an interview with the IRIB news agency: 'We do not seek permission from others regarding our defense issues and programs, whether we have missiles or not.' UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which essentially endorsed the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers, calls on Iran to refrain from developing ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, a condition that Iran claims to have adhered to. Emmanuel Macron, the French President, advised the Islamic Republic last Friday to reduce its 'aggressive behavior' in the region and clarify its ballistic missile program. In a sharp reaction to this statement, Mr. Velayati questioned what authority Emmanuel Macron has to interfere, stating that if he wants the relationship between Iran and France to grow, he should refrain from meddling in such matters. This is not the first time that the French President, a supporter of the nuclear agreement, has called for Iran to amend its behavior in the region and clarify its missile program. Previously, Macron had described Iran's activities in the region as very concerning and mentioned the possibility of sanctions against Iran's missile program. He also emphasized the need to negotiate with Iran regarding its missile program. The issue of Iran's missile program and its behavior in the region has been cited by Donald Trump, the former President of the United States, as a reason to describe the nuclear agreement as flawed and deficient. U.S. officials have stated that Trump views the JCPOA within a broader framework than just Iran's nuclear program, and he ultimately failed to affirm Iran's compliance with the nuclear agreement on October 14, while outlining his new strategy towards Iran, citing the deficiencies of the agreement from his perspective. He stated that if he could not address the JCPOA's shortcomings in conjunction with Congress and U.S. allies, he would withdraw from it. Senior officials in Trump's administration, including Trump himself, have repeatedly indicated that Iran, by insisting on testing ballistic missiles and exhibiting behavior in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria, has not adhered to the 'spirit of the JCPOA.' In response, the Islamic Republic accuses the U.S. of not adhering to the 'spirit of the JCPOA,' a point that Ali Akbar Velayati also referenced on Saturday, stating: 'The new U.S. administration has from the outset decided not to fulfill its JCPOA commitments due to its hostility towards the Islamic Republic of Iran.' Following Trump's refusal to affirm Iran's compliance with the JCPOA, and despite European Union leaders repeatedly defending the agreement and emphasizing their commitment to it, reports emerged that Europe would simultaneously exert pressure on Iran regarding its missile program. Reuters reported at the end of October that European leaders, while defending the JCPOA, did not want to completely distance themselves from Washington and were therefore considering ways to criticize the Islamic Republic's missile program. Following this theory's publication, Florence Parly, the French Minister of Defense, announced on October 20 that her country intends to resolve the issue of Iran's 'missile program' and its 'destabilizing' behaviors. In this context, Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French Foreign Minister, also expressed concerns about Iran's 'interventions' and 'hegemonic' intentions in the region during a visit to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, last Thursday. These French comments also provoked a sharp response from Iran. Bahram Qasemi, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, accused Paris of having a 'one-sided and biased' approach to Middle Eastern crises. Qasemi criticized that, according to him, 'some officials from extraterritorial countries travel to the Persian Gulf and, ignoring the existing and very clear realities of the region, repeat their baseless and hostile concerns about Iran under the influence of delusional and warmongering Saudi officials.'