FOREIGN POLICY/IRAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Escalating a war of words with the United States, President Hassan Rouhani of Iran declared on Friday [9-22-17] that his country would continue to develop new missiles and ‘would not seek anyone’s permission to defend our land.’
As he spoke at a military parade in Tehran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps unveiled a ballistic missile with a range of about 1,250 miles, making it capable of reaching much of the Middle East, including Israel.
Mr. Rouhani’s nationally televised speech at the parade — which commemorates the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-88 — and the show of force were a direct display of defiance toward President Trump, who signed a bill in August imposing mandatory penalties on those involved in Iran’s ballistic missile program and anyone who does business with them.
Although United Nations provisions seek to limit ballistic missile technology, the nuclear agreement negotiated in 2015 by Iran and six world powers, including the United States, does not prohibit Iran from developing such weapons.
The Trump administration has called the omission of ballistic missiles a central flaw of the agreement, which Mr. Trump may try to revisit — or scrap altogether, as he has threatened in the past…
Upon his return from New York, Mr. Rouhani strongly defended Iran’s right to self-defense.”
-Sewell Chan, “Rouhani Lashes Back at Trump, as Iran Unveils New Missile,” The New York Times online, Sept. 22, 2017