Defense Minister Amir Hatami said Friday Iran’s regional influence is one of its major facets of power that has kept hostile regimes at bay, adding that the US efforts to undermine the military might is indeed an exercise in futility. General Hatami said the US has done all it can since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 to undermine Iran’s defense power, trying everything, including punitive sanctions, but did not achieve the results it desired , ISNA reported.
His comments came after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on May 21 laid out a list of demands for the government in Tehran if it wants permanent relief from economic sanctions and reach a new international agreement after Washington pulled out of the 2015 international nuclear deal signed by Iran and the world powers.
The former CIA boss turned state secretary, who is seen as a recycled neocon very close to Israel, insisted that Iran end all nuclear enrichment and shut down its heavy water reactor, halt support for regional allies such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, withdraw forces from Syria and stop developing ballistic missiles among other demands, or face "the strongest sanctions in history".
"Iran will continue to safeguard its dignity by relying on domestic defense capabilities," the defense chief said. "If we had the same defense power we have today when the Americans shot down our passenger plane over the Persian Gulf… we would have not allowed the criminal captain of the warship to be rewarded and would have certainly sunk the US ship," Hatami said.
Hatami was referring to the downing of an Iranian commercial flight with 290 passengers by the USS Vincennes over the Persian Gulf in July 1988.
Washington claimed its missile cruiser mistook the large Iranian passenger plane for a relatively small fighter jet that intended to target the Vincennes. The despicable crime by the US navy killed all on board Iran Air Flight 655.
No Military Campaign Against Iran
Meanwhile, a top security official said the US does not have the courage to launch a military attack against Iran, adding that the country will continue to strengthen its defenses in defiance of western pressure.
"Washington would not dare carry out a military attack against Iran, and the sanctions policy has failed," Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, told Al Jazeera in a recent interview. He added that any act of aggression by the Americans in the Persian Gulf will be met with a "direct" and "swift" response.
Defense Program
Shamkhani said Iran will not negotiate its missile program as demanded by the US and some European powers. "Our missile program is non-negotiable, and we will continue to increase our defense capabilities," he said. Iran will continue supporting all members of the resistance front against the US and Israel in the region, he was quoted as saying.
Revolutionary Mindset
In a separate development, a senior military official said promoting "revolutionary thinking" in economic management will help dash enemy hopes to emerge victorious from the economic warfare against the Islamic Republic.
Chairman of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Baqeri made the remarks in a statement Wednesday, a day ahead of the 36th anniversary of the liberation of the southwestern city of Khorramshahr during the 1980-1988 war imposed on Iran by former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, ISNA reported. He said the enemies have targeted the people's livelihood and their evil plans can only be neutralized by making the economy more resilient and reducing economic dependence on foreigners.
Baqeri said Iranian forces turned the war experience into a "golden opportunity" to strengthen domestic sectors and the country is now well-prepared to address its challenges.
In a ceremony held in Tehran on Thursday to mark the occasion, President Hassan Rouhani said Iran, which is known as a "great" and "dignified" nation, will never capitulate to US demands and will continue to defend its dignity and independence.
"We will reach nowhere if we choose humiliation in the face of a superpower," he said, adding that the liberation of Khorramshahr showed the world that Iran is an "invincible" power.
