Iran tests new missile despite US warnings

The test comes just a day after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said his country was determined to strengthen its missile capabilities, brushing aside US President Donald Trump's criticism of the country's nuclear program.

Read more: What are Donald Trump's objections to the Iran nuclear deal?

The broadcaster did not specify when and where the test was carried out. Officials announced Friday that the missile would be tested "soon."

Rouhani unveiled the Khoramshahr missile on Friday during a military parade to mark the anniversary of Iran's war with Saddam Hussein's Iraq that began in 1980 and lasted eight years.

"The Khoramshahr missile has a range of 2,000 kilometers [1,250 miles] and can carry multiple warheads," the official IRNA news agency quoted Revolutionary Guards aerospace chief General Amir Ali Hajizadeh as saying.

Previous missile tests by Iran have triggered sanctions by the United States, which argues that the tests violate the spirit of the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and major world powers.

Responding to the missile test, Trump said it illustrated the weakness of the existing nuclear deal.

Rising tensions

Tensions have been rising between Iran and US since President Trump took office in January. The Trump administration said in February it was putting Iran "on notice" for its ballistic missile tests.

The warning was followed by a new set of sanctions against 18 Iranian entities and individuals in July. The US State Department cited Iran's ballistic missile program and support for terrorist groups as reasons for the new sanctions.

The measures were imposed despite the White House admitting in June that the Islamic Republic was abiding by the terms of the nuclear deal, which required the country to limit its ability to produce material to build nuclear weapons.

Iran responded by accusing the US of sabotaging its nuclear deal . It said the sanctions violated the 2015 agreement.

During the presidential campaign, Trump described the accord - struck between Tehran and the P5+1 group, including Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US - as the "worst deal ever."

During his maiden speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump called Iran a "murderous regime"and a "depleted rogue state whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed and chaos."

Trump is due to inform the US Congress on October 15 whether he believes Iran is complying with the nuclear deal and if the US should stick with the agreement. Trump said on Wednesday he had made his decision but was not yet ready to reveal it.

The other signatories to the deal have opposed scrapping it, saying Iran had stuck to its commitments.

ap/jlw (AFP, dpa)