Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for the country to further develop its military capabilities after United States President Donald Trump threatened to use force if Tehran does not negotiate on its nuclear programme.
Speaking on Wednesday after visiting an exhibition in the country’s capital showcasing the latest defence sector developments, Khamenei said “progress should not be stopped”.
“We cannot be satisfied,” Khamenei said. “Say that we previously set a limit for the accuracy of our missiles, but we now feel this limit is no longer enough. We have to go forward.”
“Today, our defensive power is well known, our enemies are afraid of this. This is very important for our country,” he said.
The statements come after Iran’s representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, condemned what he called Trump’s “reckless and inflammatory statements” and warned that “any act of aggression will have severe consequences”.
In a letter to the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Iravani referred to Trump’s recent media interviews, in which the US leader suggested stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons could be achieved either “with bombs or with a written piece of paper”.
“I would much rather do a deal that’s not gonna hurt them,” Trump told Fox News on Monday, adding that “I’d love to make a deal with them without bombing them.”
Tensions have ratcheted since Trump took office in January and reinstated his “maximum pressure” policy against Iran over concerns the country was seeking to develop nuclear weapons.
In his letter to the UN Security Council, Iravani protested against what he described as Trump’s “deeply alarming and irresponsible remarks”.
“These reckless and inflammatory statements flagrantly violate international law and the UN Charter, particularly Article 2(4), which prohibits threats or use of force against sovereign states,” Iravani stated in the letter published by Iran’s official IRNA news agency.
He further warned that “any act of aggression will have severe consequences, for which the United States will bear full responsibility”.
Tehran insists its nuclear programme is solely for peaceful purposes and denies any intention to develop nuclear weapons.
‘No problem will be solved by negotiating with America’
During Trump’s first term, which ended in 2021, Trump withdrew from a landmark deal that had imposed curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief.
Tehran continued to adhere to the deal – known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – until a year after Washington pulled out, but then began rolling back its commitments.
It has also accelerated the enrichment of uranium to up to 60 percent purity, close to the roughly 90 percent weapons-grade level, the UN nuclear watchdog chief said in December.
Efforts to revive the 2015 deal during the Biden administration faltered.
On Friday, Khamenei said there should not be any negotiations with the US after Trump suggested striking a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran.
“No problem will be solved by negotiating with America,” Khamenei said, citing previous “experience”.
Earlier this week, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also questioned US sincerity in seeking talks with Tehran.
“Trump says he wants to negotiate, yet at the same time, he signs off on every possible conspiracy to bring this revolution to its knees,” Pezeshkian told those gathered in Tehran on Monday to mark the 46th anniversary of the Iranian revolution.
