THE rule-by-tweeting Presidency of Donald Trump gained a menacing edge yesterday when he used social media to threaten Iran over its development of ballistic missiles.
Trump tweeted: “Iran has been formally PUT ON NOTICE for firing a ballistic missile. Should have been thankful for the terrible deal the US made with them!”
The Islamic Republic of Iran hit back, with Ali Akbar Velayati, senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying: “This is not the first time an inexperienced person has threatened Iran.
“Iran does not need permission from any country to defend itself. The American government will understand threatening Iran is useless.”
Bahram Ghasemi, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, was also quoted by state news agency IRNA as saying the USA’s claims were “baseless, repetitive and provocative”.
Relations between the USA and Iran had already plummeted after President Trump signed his executive order banning Iranians and people from six other mainly Muslim countries from travelling to the USA.
Trump’s tweet that provoked the Iranian response echoed the comments from his national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Flynn said on Wednesday that the US will act against Iran unless it stops testing ballistic missiles, though neither Flynn nor the President would elaborate on what retaliatory actions the US would pursue.
Trump then tweeted yesterday: “Iran was on its last legs and ready to collapse until the US came along and gave it a life-line in the form of the Iran Deal: $150 billion.”
The deal mentioned by Trump was negotiated by the United Nations, the USA, the UK and other countries to try to prevent Iran developing nuclear weapons by putting money into the country’s infrastructure.
Trump has railed against the deal over many months but has not said if he will cancel the American part of it.
United Nations resolutions currently do not prohibit Tehran from conducting such missile tests but one states: “Iran is called upon not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons.”
Though Iran had at first denied testing a ballistic missile, the Government of Glasgow-educated President Hassan Rouhani confirmed that a missile had been tested for “defensive” purposes.
As a result, senior Trump administration officials said yesterday they were actively considering a “range of options” including economic measures and increased support for Iran’s regional adversaries.
Trump also too to Twitter after a row with Australia MP Malcolm Turnbull over an Obama deal to resettle 1,250 refugees in the US.
He tweeted that he would “study this dumb deal”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here