US presses missile issue ahead of indirect Iran talks
Women walk past a ballistic missile launch vehicle in Tehran in Iran.
Donald Trump said Iran had ‘already developed missiles that can threaten Europe’ and US bases overseas
The United States and Iran are set to hold indirect talks in Switzerland that aim to strike a deal to avert fresh conflict and bring an end to weeks of threats.
The new round of negotiations in Geneva comes after the US carried out a massive military build-up in the region and US President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if a deal is not reached.
In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Mr Trump accused Iran of “pursuing sinister nuclear ambitions”.
He also claimed Tehran had “already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America”.
The Iranian foreign ministry called these claims “big lies”.
The maximum range of Iran’s missiles is 2,000km, according to what Iran has publicly disclosed.
However, the US Congressional Research Service estimates they top out at about 3,000km – less than a third of the distance to the continental United States.
The dispute between the countries mostly revolves around Iran’s nuclear programme, which the West believes is aimed at building an atomic bomb, but Tehran insists is peaceful.
However, the US has also been pushing to discuss Iran’s ballistic missile programme and Iran’s support for armed groups hostile towards Israel.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Iran must also negotiate on its missile programme, calling Tehran’s refusal to discuss ballistic weapons “a big, big problem” on the eve of the talks.
He added: “The president wants diplomatic solutions.”
Iran has taken anything beyond the nuclear issue off the negotiating table and has demanded that the US sanctions crippling its economy be part of any agreement.
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