Iran has warned the United States not to resort to military action against it,
saying US bases in the region are vulnerable to the Islamic Republic’s missiles,
state media reported on Saturday.
The comments by a senior Iranian
military commander were an apparent response to US officials who have said
Washington was ready to use force to stop Iran’s march to nuclear weapons
capability.
One government official in Jerusalem said the “belligerent
words” of Iran’s leadership have already unfortunately been accompanied by
“belligerent actions.”
“The Iranians concretely support the brutal regime
in Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and nihilistic forces throughout
the region.
This dangerous regime can simply not be allowed to achieve
nuclear weapons, that would change the world as we now it,” the official
said.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton indicated on
Friday that Iran would need to prove its intentions to take steps to address
international concerns over its nuclear program by the end of this
month.
“We are looking for concrete actions and we will know by the next
meeting in Moscow in just a few weeks whether Iran is prepared to take such
actions,” Clinton told reporters while on a trip to Norway.
She
continued, “We will judge them by their actions and we will determine whether
those actions are sufficient to meet their obligations.”
A third round of
negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program is scheduled to begin on June 17 in
Moscow, following inconclusive talks world powers held with the Islamic Republic
in April and May in two Middle East capitals.
Israel has been concerned
that Iran is using the talks to drag out the timeline for its uranium enrichment
activity and wants to see a firm endgame imposed.
The US has in the past
said it, too, doesn’t want to see talks for the sake of talks that only give
Tehran more opportunity for its enrichment program, but has seen more time at
play than Israel and has agreed to three rounds of talks spaced out over several
weeks.
While the US has said the window for talks is not unlimited,
Clinton’s words on Friday went the furthest in giving a time-frame for American
expectations about Iranian performance.
“Our negotiations with Iran have
never been about intentions or sincerity, but actions and results,” she
said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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