Iran: Trump claims of North Korea links ‘nonsense’
Iran said Monday that suggestions by US President Donald Trump that it was working with North Korea on missile development were “nonsense”.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi was responding to a tweet by Trump over the weekend in which the US president wrote: “Iran just test-fired a ballistic missile capable of reaching Israel. They are also working with North Korea,” AFP reported.
Qassemi, who was speaking at a press conference in Tehran on Monday, said there were “no similarities nor resemblance” with the actions of North Korea, and that claims they were working together on ballistic missile development amounted to a “clear lie”.
“It is very clear that this is a nonsense and baseless claim,” he told reporters.
Lacking logic
Shifting to the Kurdish secession referendum in Iraq, Qassemi once again reaffirmed Iran’s opposition to the vote, underlining the need for maintaining the Arab country’s national sovereignty at a time that Baghdad is making great strides against terrorists.
“Our position is totally clear. This measure came at a wrong juncture and lacked the necessary logic.”
He added the vote was held as “the Iraqi government had managed to score gains to a large extent in the fight against terrorism,” Press TV reported.
The vote was announced earlier in the year much to the consternation of the international community that warned it could most likely throw the already violenceweary country into more trouble. Despite all opposition, the referendum was held on Monday.
“We emphasize Iraq’s territorial integrity, national sovereignty, and the trend of democratic developments in the country,” Qassemi said. “Any measure that contradicts Iraq’s stability, security and territorial integrity is unwarranted and wrong.”
Iraqi Kurds voted in a controversial independence referendum that has drawn massive objection at regional and international levels.
The official also roundly rejected some Western media reports, which came out on Sunday, alleging that Iran had bombarded Iraq’s Kurdistan region, calling them media hype on the eve of the referendum.
Qassemi said Iran’s closure of its borders with the region came at a request from the Iraqi government.