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Iran vows to continue missile tests, dismissing US denunciations

Key Points
  • Iran will continue missile tests to build up its defense and deterrence capabilities, a top military spokesman was quoted as saying on Sunday.
  • U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday condemned what he described as Iran's testing of a medium-range ballistic missile.
An Iranian military truck carries surface-to-air missiles past a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a parade on the occasion of the country's annual army day on April 18, 2018, in Tehran.
Atta Kenare | AFP | Getty Images

Iran will continue missile tests to build up its defense and deterrence capabilities, a top military spokesman was quoted as saying on Sunday, following a U.S. allegation that Tehran had carried out a new missile test.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday condemned what he described as Iran's testing of a medium-range ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple warheads as a violation of the international agreement on Tehran's nuclear program.

"Missile tests ... are carried out for defense and the country's deterrence and we will continue this," General Abolfazl Shekarchi, a senior spokesman for Iran's armed forces, was quoted as saying by the semi-official Tasnim news agency. He did not confirm or deny that Iran had carried out a new test.