Iran on Sunday carried out a test launch of a medium-range ballistic missile in contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 2231, US Officials confirmed on Monday.
The missile test was carried out from a site near Semnan, east of Tehran and exploded after 630 miles in a failed test of re-entry vehicle.
Responding to the test, US President Donald Trump and National Security Adviser Michael Flynn declared: “we are officially putting Iran on notice”.
Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif defended the legality of the test at a news conference, stating: “The missiles aren’t part of the nuclear accords. Iran will never use missiles produced in Iran to attack any other country…no Iranian missiles have been produced to carry nuclear warheads”.
Jean-Marc Ayrault, France’s Foreign Minister, raised French concerns over the missile test at the conference, claiming that while Iran had “largely” honoured the terms of the deal, it hindered the international community’s confidence in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) accord, as well as contravening UN Security Council resolutions.
UN Security Council Resolution 2231, enacted days after the Iranian nuclear deal, clearly states that Iran cannot “undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology”.
Iran had originally agreed to halt its nuclear programme in return for sanctions being lifted.
At least nine Iranian missile launches are said to have taken place since the JCPOA was signed in July 2015 between Iran and P5+1 world powers.
