TEHRAN (Tasnim) – US State Department Spokesman John Kirby said Iran’s recent missile tests are not a “violation” of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a lasting nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers.





“I do want to make it clear that such tests, if they are true, are not a violation of the JCPOA. If it’s confirmed that this is what they, in fact, did, then we’ll have every intention of raising the matter to the UN Security Council,” Kirby said during a daily press briefing on Tuesday, the official website of the US Department of State reported.

Meanwhile, Mark Toner, who is another US State Department spokesman, said Washington would review the incident and, if it is confirmed, raise it in the UN Security Council and seek an "appropriate response".

The remarks came after the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) fired a number of ballistic missiles, including a 800-km range missile, dubbed Qiam, from an underground silo during a nationwide missile exercise on Tuesday.

A report broadcast by the state television showed missile silos at seemingly impregnable underground facilities, full of advanced missiles.

The underground silos are seen as complementary gear for the IRGC’s underground “missile cities.”

In comments on the sidelines of the drill, codenamed 'Might of Velayat', IRGC Commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said the launch of various types of missiles in the exercise was only a slight indication that the IRGC’s missile silos, scattered all over the country, are fully operational.

The missile drill has been in progress for a couple of days, but its final stage kicked off on Tuesday in different parts of the country.

According to the IRGC, the exercise is meant to demonstrate Iran’s might and sustainable security in light of unity, convergence, empathy and harmony.

Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) finalized the text of the nuclear deal dubbed the JCPOA in the Austrian capital Vienna on July 14.

By Tasnim News Agency