Tokyo, Aug 23 (IANS) Iran’s weaponry and defence equipment production has doubled over the past 12 months, a senior official has said.
In an interview with state-run IRIB TV on Friday evening (local time), Iranian Defence Ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said that since the beginning of the war in late February, the country’s production of certain strategic military products and equipment had increased more than threefold.
The increase was achieved despite the fact that limited parts of Iran’s defence industry sections were targeted during the 12-day war with Israel in June last year, said the official.
Becoming stronger is the only way to counter foreign powers seeking to attack Iran’s independence, he said.
On February 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities, killing the country’s then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, military commanders and civilians. Iran responded with waves of missile and drone attacks targeting Israel as well as US bases and assets in the region, reports Xinhua news agency.
A ceasefire was achieved between the warring parties on April 8. On June 18, Iran and the United States signed an MoU on ending the war in the region on all fronts, including Lebanon.
Under the MoU, the two countries were scheduled to hold negotiations within 60 days, ending on August 17, to reach a final agreement. However, the two sides failed to make sufficient progress toward a deal as tensions continued to escalate.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi held a phone call to discuss the latest regional developments and ongoing diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions.
The two ministers discussed efforts to create conditions for a return to diplomacy, including the implementation of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the United States and Iran on June 18, according to a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry on Saturday (local time).
Abdelatty stressed the importance of intensifying ongoing diplomatic efforts to ease current escalations and reach peaceful understandings that would help restore security and stability in the region, reports Xinhua news agency.
He also underscored the importance of ensuring the freedom and safety of international navigation and respecting the security and stability of the Gulf states in a way that serves the interests of all peoples in the region.
Araghchi briefed Abdelatty on Iran’s assessment of recent developments, the course of negotiations, and the challenges facing them, according to the statement.
–IANS
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