The deputy chairman of the General Staff of the Armed Forces denounced the recent remarks by US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter demanding inspection of Iran's military sites under a final nuclear agreement as an indication of the US "biased approach".
"Such remarks are reflective of a biased approach on the part of the American side," IRNA quoted Lieutenant General Massoud Jazayeri as saying on Friday.
In an interview with CNN on Friday, Carter said any deal that the United States would make with Iran would include inspections of Iran's facilities.
His comments came after Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei stressed that Iran will not give access to its military sites as part of any inspection program to verify Tehran's compliance with the nuclear pact.
"The outsiders must not be allowed to penetrate the country's security and military premises under the excuse of inspections," the Leader said in an address to a gathering of eulogists on Thursday.
Jazayeri said, "Iranian negotiators also had explicitly expressed opposition to inspection of Iran's military and defense facilities," adding that Iran's military power acts as a strong deterrent against the enemies of the Islamic Republic.
The deputy chairman of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee also commented on Carters' remarks, describing them as "hollow", noting that US officials will ultimately have to recognize the realities on the ground.
On Carter's comments regarding the United States' capability of destroying Iran's nuclear facilities, Mansour Haqiqatpour said, "Certainly, his words are hollow and the Americans will not dare to attack Iran."
Carter said, "We have the capability to shut down, set back and destroy the Iranian nuclear program and I believe the Iranians know that and understand that."
"They absolutely cannot do anything to harm the Islamic Republic," Haqiqatpour told ICANA on Saturday, noting, "If they had the power to carry out an attack on Iran, they would have mounted it very long ago."
"(The military centers) are among Iran's red lines," the lawmaker stressed, adding that the demand that Iran's military sites be subject to inspection comes from the officials of a country that, like the Israeli regime, does not allow any inspection of its own facilities.
