The Wall Street Journal:
An Iranian military official said Iran conducted its third ballistic missile test-firing since the country’s landmark nuclear deal went into effect in January, but a few hours later Iran’s defense minister countered the report.
The semiofficial Tasnim News Agency reported earlier Monday that the country fired a missile with a range of 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) two weeks ago, citing Brig. Gen. Ali Abdollahi. The missile was precision-guided and could accurately strike a target with a 26-foot margin of error, he said.
But Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Hossein Dehghan said Iran hadn’t test-fired a missile of the range cited by the media, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency, an apparent reference to the Tasnim report. He nevertheless said Iran was moving forward in building up its defensive capabilities, including through its ballistic missile program.
Brig. Gen. Dehghan didn’t explain how the conflicting reports arose, and it wasn’t clear whether the earlier statement from Brig. Gen. Abdollahi was in error. Iranian officials didn’t immediately respond to requests for clarification.
Brig. Gen. Dehghan is higher in Iran’s military hierarchy than Brig. Gen. Abdollahi, whom Tasnim called the army’s deputy chief of staff.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Monday that the administration is aware of statements by Iranian officials indicating a missile test didn’t occur. “We’re still trying to get to the bottom of what exactly transpired,” Mr. Earnest said.
Tests of medium-range missiles during two days in March raised U.S. concern that Iran wasn’t abiding by the spirit of the nuclear deal concluded last year. A 2015 United Nations Security Council resolution relating to the deal called upon Iran to halt launches of nuclear-capable missiles.
Despite the recent tests—as well as earlier launches in October and November—U.S. officials so far have stopped short of saying Iran is in violation of the accord. But the Treasury Department sanctioned 11 Iranian entities in January, citing their connections to the ballistic-missile program.
“We remain deeply concerned about Iran’s ballistic missile test-launches, which are provocative and destabilizing,” a senior Obama administration official said Monday. “These launches are inconsistent with U.N. Security Council resolution 2231, in which the Security Council called upon Iran not undertake any launches of ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering a nuclear weapon.”
Obama administration critics blamed the White House for what one, Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.), called “Iran’s growing belligerence in the aftermath of the reckless Iran nuclear deal.”
