Al-Monitor | Arash Karami: As US President Donald Trump again, on July 17, certified that Iran has been in compliance with the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and the six world powers and waived nuclear-related sanctions on the country, a war of words is developing between the two sides over non-nuclear sanctions. Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, chief of staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, contributed to the war with a July 17 statement about possible new US sanctions against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). “Counting the IRGC among terrorist groups and similarly sanctioning them is a big risk for America and its bases and troops in the region,” Bagheri said.

“The Islamic Republic’s missile strength is for defense and is never negotiable at any level,” he further stated in regard to sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program. “Iran has always stood up against arrogant powers, especially America, and day by day becomes more resistant. Therefore, the next sanctions are another opportunity for growth and self-sufficiency for domestic capacities.”

In response to comments by US Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson supporting regime change in Iran, Bagheri urged American officials to speak “more wisely and measured” about powerful countries such as Iran.

The IRGC’s Quds Force has already been sanctioned by the United States. Sanctioning the entire IRGC, which has economic interests in a wide variety of sectors in Iran, however, would have implications that could jeopardize the nuclear deal, which is officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

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