'Iran will firmly counter US covert war'

PRESS TV - Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi says the Islamic Republic is highly capable of employing aerial drones to counter any potential US-led covert war against the country.

Iran has great capabilities in all fields of national defense, including the use of intelligence drones as well as the decoding of such aircraft and countering electronic and covert warfare, Vahidi said on Sunday.

He added that the Islamic Republic will develop and maintain its accomplishments which have been achieved during “the most difficult circumstances and under full, comprehensive sanctions.”

The minister noted that Iranian scientists would persistently follow the path of Iran's progress and reach even more scientific and technical milestones.

He also slammed the UN silence on the violation of Iran's airspace by an American spy drone, recently brought down by Iranian air defense forces.

The United States blatantly breached all international regulations and violated the rights of Iran and Afghanistan, Vahidi said, adding that, however, the issue faced the silence of international bodies, particularly the United Nations.

 

On December 4, the Iranian military's electronic warfare unit downed a US RQ-170 Sentinel stealth reconnaissance aircraft inside Iran with minimal damage.

The aircraft, designed and developed by the American company Lockheed Martin, had crossed into Iran's airspace over the border with neighboring Afghanistan.

Vahidi questioned the performance of the UN which issued a resolution to condemn a US-fabricated assassination plot attributed to Tehran but has kept silent on the blatant violation of Iran's airspace as well as the violation of the national sovereignty of Iran and Afghanistan.

On October 11, the US Justice Department accused Iran of plotting to assassinate Saudi Arabia's Ambassador to Washington, Adel al-Jubeir, with help from a man suspected of being a member of a Mexican drug cartel.

Tehran has categorically denied the allegations and stressed that the media hype fabricated by Washington is an attempt to deflect attention from the anti-corruption and anti-corporatism protests currently rocking the United States.