“Iran will keep building missiles”

IRAN - Iran’s missile program is not in breach of its nuclear deal and will continue despite objections from the United States, President Hassan Rouhani said Sunday. Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump announced that he would no longer make regular certifications that the lifting of sanctions under the deal – known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) – had been in US interests. The agreement was negotiated in 2015 with the P5 +1 powers and the European Union. The P5+1 includes Germany and the permanent members of the UN Security Council: the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain. In an October 13 speech, Trump said the deal “was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into” and accused Iran of committing “multiple violations of the agreement.”

According to the Iranian President’s official website, Rouhani in a speech Sunday questioned the US government’s credibility and reliability. “If a government like the US government states that it is not committed to an important international commitment, and its reason is that the previous administration has been tricked, then what happens with the continuity of the responsibility of the governments?” it quoted him as saying. “You are explicitly violating your previous agreements and neglecting a UN Security Council-approved agreement.” The fact that the plan does not address Iran’s nuclear missile program is one reason why Trump had been dissatisfied with the agreement. But Sunday Rouhani said Iran had fulfilled its obligations on the nuclear issue and had the right to defend itself. “We will build, produce and store any weapon of any kind we need to defend ourselves, our territorial integrity and our nation, and we will not hesitate about it,” he said.

(CNN)