Tehran, Oct 12: Dismissing US claims that Iran has lost its leverage in the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran on Monday said that the strategic waterway will not be secure as long as Washington continues the conflict. Addressing a weekly press conference, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei refuted US President Donald Trump’s claims about the Strait of Hormuz, saying American assertions do not match realities on the ground.
“The Americans can keep saying that Iran has lost its leverage, but we will continue doing our work,” Baghaei was quoted as saying by Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency. He added that markets follow their own rules and are not swayed by such claims. The spokesperson emphasised that the situation has resulted from the “actions and aggression” of the US and Israel, and that Iran had taken measures in accordance with international law.
“As long as the US continues the war, security will not return to this waterway,” said Baghaei, adding that Iran was not pleased with the situation but it is the US which has created problems for the region and the world. On the ongoing exchange with Washington, Baghaei said messages were continuing to be passed through mediators, and that the seven points discussed included the lifting of the blockade, a halt to the war on all fronts and the release of Iran’s frozen assets.
“Whatever was included in the Islamabad memorandum of understanding remains in place,” he said, adding that the US had imposed new sanctions in the meantime that must also be lifted, Tasnim reported. He acknowledged that the points put forward so far were insufficient and said Tehran was reviewing the issues raised by the US and would convey its response to the mediators once the review was complete.
Separately, Iran’s Acting Defence Minister Brigadier General Majid Ibn al-Reza warned that those deliberately promoting civilisational confrontation must bear responsibility for its dangerous consequences, IRNA news agency reported. Referring to recent remarks by US officials about Iran and its civilisation, he said turning historical and cultural differences into grounds for political and military confrontation was a dangerous miscalculation.
“He also stressed that promoting civilisational confrontation is like playing with fire, warning that those who ignite it cannot control its spread or shield themselves from its consequences,” IRNA reported. Ibn al-Reza, who made the remarks during a meeting with heads of industrial organisations affiliated with the Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics, said Iran would not allow threats or humiliation to undermine its national identity or independence.
IANS