TEHRAN - Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said on Saturday that the “U.S. Army, Pentagon and CIA” support the terrorists in the Middle East region.

The remarks by Larijani followed efforts by hawks in the U.S. Congress to designate the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps a terrorist group. 

“The U.S. Army, Pentagon and the CIA support terrorists in the region and are linked to all the terrorist movements. We will take important decisions in the parliament in this respect and will study the issue seriously,” Larijani asserted.

He also said Iran will take retaliatory action if the U.S. takes an “inappropriate move” in regard to the July 2015 nuclear deal.

Under the deal, Iran is obligated to slow down its nuclear activities and in return the 5+1 countries, including the U.S., must terminate financial and economic sanctions against Iran. However, the U.S. under the Trump administration, is taking steps which may jeopardize the international deal which has been endorsed by the UN Security Council.

The International Atomic Energy Agency is tasked to monitor the implementation of the deal. 

“If it is in the interests of the U.S. not to observe obligations of the Agency, we are ready to give a good response,” Larijani pointed out.

The U.S. has toughened its language against Iran. On Friday its Defense Secretary James Mattis claimed that Iran continues to behave as an exporter of terrorism and still sponsors militant activity.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said, “We should remind this American official not to give the wrong address about the roots and sources of terrorism.”

Mattis is well known for his anti-Iran position. In 2012, he famously remarked that the three primary threats the U.S. faced were “Iran, Iran, Iran”.

NA/PA