Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said Iran would give a decisive response to any deceptive measure of the US government in breach of the nuclear deal, reached between Iran and world major powers last July, while Tehran fulfills its commitments under the deal.
His statement was a warning to the US politicians who have made several moves against Tehran in recent weeks.
"Any unconsidered action will be responded by a considered action of Iran," Fars News Agency quoted Larijani as saying.
Early December, the US Congress passed a law restricting visa-free travel rights for people who have visited Iran, a measure that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif termed "a breach of the nuclear deal" if implemented. This is while US Secretary of State John Kerry assured Zarif in a letter that the US government would not harm Iran's interests.
He touched upon US plans to impose new sanctions against Iran, claiming a ballistic missile test that Iran carried out in October was illegal, an accusation Tehran denies.
"According to the law, the government is tasked with strengthening the defensive capabilities of its armed forces, as the recent instructions of President Hassan Rouhani [in his letter to Defense Minister Ahmad Dehqan] implies," Larijani said.
Rouhani ordered the ministry in his letter on December 31 to expedite efforts for boosting the country’s missile power.
Rouhani's letter came in the wake of a report by The Wall Street Journal that Washington is preparing sanctions against nearly a dozen companies and individuals in Iran, Hong Kong and the UAE for their role in developing Iran's ballistic missile program.
WSJ later said White House has delayed imposing new sanctions.
Larijani also pointed to US allegations against Iran for what it calls Tehran's support for terrorism, saying that the West supports terrorism in the region with the help of some regional allies.
In a separate development, the US is trying to seize the assets of the Central Bank of Iran, a non-governmental body, over the Iranian government's alleged role in the 1983 bombing of the US Marine barracks in Beirut and the 1996 bombing of Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia.
The controversies come days before the Implementation Day of the nuclear deal, expected to come in late January or February, following which the US should terminate all nuclear-related sanctions against Tehran.
According to the 8th clause in the preamble and general provisions of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as the deal is formally called, “The E3/EU+3 and Iran commit to implement this JCPOA in good faith and in a constructive atmosphere, based on mutual respect, and to refrain from any action inconsistent with the letter, spirit and intent of the JCPOA that would undermine its successful implementation.”
