Tel Aviv [Israel], October 8: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke out on October 7 after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently accused Tehran of developing missiles capable of reaching US cities.
In an interview with American podcast host Ben Shapiro published on October 6, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "Iran is developing... an intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of 8,000 km. What does that mean? They're adding another 3,000 km... the targets are New York City, Washington, Boston, Miami, Mar-a-Lago." Mar-a-Lago is the resort of US President Donald Trump in Florida.
In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on October 7 criticized Netanyahu's statement, saying that Israel was trying to portray Tehran's defense capabilities as a threat, according to AFP. "Israel is trying to create an imaginary threat from our defense capabilities," Araghchi wrote on social network X.
Iran possesses a large arsenal of indigenous ballistic missiles , including the Shahab-3 missile with a range of 2,000 km, enough to reach Israel.
In June, a 12-day conflict erupted following unprecedented Israeli strikes inside Iran, targeting military, political and nuclear facilities.
Iran responded by launching missiles and drones at Israel and the largest US base in the Middle East (located in Qatar), after Washington launched its own airstrikes targeting three nuclear facilities in Iran.
Since the ceasefire with Israel took effect on June 24, Iranian political and military officials have warned of the possibility of a new conflict, saying they are prepared for war but do not seek it.
Western countries and Israel accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons and developing missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Iran denies such accusations, asserting that its nuclear program is only for civilian energy and medical research purposes, according to AFP.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
