Defiant Iran to carry out missile exercise

Iran was to deploy missiles for a Revolutionary Guards exercise on Saturday in a show of defiance, a day after the United States imposed sanctions over a ballistic missile test launch last weekend. Relations between Washington and Tehran have deteriorated sharply since Donald Trump took office last month promising a tough line on what he sees as Iranian belligerency towards U.S. interests and allies. Hours after the new U.S. sanctions were announced, Pentagon chief James Mattis charged that Iran was “the single biggest state sponsor of terrorism in the world”. The new sanctions are a response to Iran’s test launch of a medium-range ballistic missile last Sunday as well as its support for Yemeni rebels who attacked a Saudi frigate earlier this week, officials said. Iran’s Vice-President on Saturday urged calm heads to prevail. “These are worn-out accusations against Iran and even the [accuser] himself is ashamed of saying it,” state news agency IRNA quoted Eshagh Jahangiri as saying.

“If this nation is talked to respectfully and issues are resolved through negotiations and dialogue... it can be a win for everyone.”

But General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who is overseeing the drills, struck a more strident tone. ”If the enemy makes a mistake, our missiles will land on them,” he was quoted as saying by the Guards’ official site. — AFP