ALWAGHT- Esmaeil Baghaei states Iran’s defense capabilities are aimed at deterring aggressors and will not be negotiated.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran’s defensive and missile capabilities are designed solely to deter aggression and are not subject to negotiation. Speaking at a weekly press conference, he rejected media rhetoric from Israel and the United States portraying Iran’s missile program as a threat, calling it hypocritical given the flow of advanced and prohibited weapons to Israel. He stressed that Iran’s Armed Forces are fully prepared to defend the country and will continue their duties despite what he described as malicious media campaigns.
Baghaei recounted recent military escalations, saying Israel launched an unprovoked attack on Iran on June 13, killing senior military commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians, followed by US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in violation of international law. He said Iran responded by targeting strategic sites in the occupied territories and the US al-Udeid air base in Qatar, ultimately forcing a halt to what he described as an illegal assault through successful retaliatory operations.
Addressing other regional and international issues, Baghaei accused Israel of a long history of “false flag” operations and rejected unsubstantiated allegations linking Iran to the killing of a US-based nuclear physicist. He also held the US and Israel responsible for the resurgence of ISIS terrorism, arguing their actions in the region—particularly against Syria and Palestine—have fueled instability. Baghaei concluded that the US is complicit in Israel’s actions, bearing heavy political, financial, and reputational costs that Western public opinion is increasingly recognizing.
