Iran’s IRGC rejects possibility of talks on limiting defence capabilities, calling it ‘red line’

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) has rejected any possibility of talks over the country’s defence capabilities, calling them a red line in any negotiations.

At a press conference yesterday marking the first anniversary of Iran’s significant drone and missile strikes on Israeli military positions last year, senior IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Ali Mohammad Naeini said: “National security, along with our defence and military power, constitutes the red lines of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

Insisting that “these are issues that will never be open to negotiations or compromise under any circumstances,” Naeini highlighted that the Iranian missile barrages against Israeli positions in April and October last year reflected that position.

The IRGC spokesperson’s remarks came amid the second round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States in Oman, focusing on reaching a deal on the prevention of nuclear weapons proliferation by Iranian authorities.

While talks on Iran’s military capabilities themselves have not directly been made a topic of the ongoing negotiations, there have been indications of American – and Israeli – concerns over the matter, with US envoy to the region Steve Witkoff telling Fox News this week that the talks will also focus on the development of any Iranian missile capable of carrying a nuclear bomb.

READ: The crux of negotiations: Are Iran’s ballistic missiles more dangerous than its nuclear programme?