Khaberni - Iran announced on Thursday that its ballistic missile program will not be discussed in the upcoming negotiations with the United States, which will be conducted based on the memorandum of understanding signed by the leaders of the two countries.
Donald Trump and his counterpart Masoud Bizkeshean signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday evening, June 17, 2026, to end the war in the Middle East that began with the American-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28.
The negotiations aim to reach a final agreement within a 60-day period, which can be extended by mutual consent, to include the Iranian nuclear program and easing sanctions on Tehran. The memorandum of understanding did not address the Iranian missile program, which has long been criticized by the United States and Israel.
The spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ismail Baqai, told Iranian state television, "Our missiles do not like to be talked about at all."
He added, "Iranian missiles are meant for launching only, not for negotiation. Iran's defense capabilities will not be a subject of discussion in any form, along any path, or with any party."
The missile infrastructure of Iran was heavily targeted during the war.
Tehran has previously refused any discussion on Iran's "defensive capabilities."
Before the outbreak of the war, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Iran would need to negotiate about its missile arsenal, which Washington sees as a threat to Israel and US military bases in the region.
In statements on Wednesday on the sidelines of the G7 summit hosted by France, Trump seemed to take a softer stance on the issue of Iranian missiles.
Trump said it was "unfair" that Iran cannot possess missiles. He added, "If other countries have them, it's somewhat unfair for them not to have some," noting that the stance on missiles differs from that on nuclear weapons.
