Iran dismisses ‘big lies’ after Trump lays out case for possible attack
US president accused Iran of restarting its nuclear programme, while working to build missiles that soon would be capable of reaching the US
Even while assembling a massive military force in the Middle East, Trump has done little to explain to the American public why he might be leading the US into its most aggressive action against the Islamic Republic since its 1979 revolution.
In his speech, Trump pointed to Tehran’s support for militant groups, its killing of protesters and the country’s missile and nuclear programmes as threats to the region and the United States.
“The (Iranian) regime and its murderous proxies have spread nothing but terrorism and death and hate,” the Republican president said about 90 minutes into his annual address to a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives.
Tehran was quick to fire back in an apparent response to the US address. “Whatever they’re alleging in regards to Iran’s nuclear program, Iran’s ballistic missiles, and the number of casualties during January’s unrest is simply the repetition of ‘big lies’,” Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a social media post on Wednesday.