Iran says new US economic sanctions over missile test are ‘illegitimate’

His remarks, quoted by Iranian state media, were made in a letter to President Hassan Rohani. However, the US Treasury Department said foreign subsidiaries of American companies would now be allowed to do business with Iran.

Iran conducted a ballistic missile test in October, which the United Nations called a breach of a resolution prohibiting the Islamic Republic from developing missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads.

“Amir, I can not wait to meet you for the first time, give you a big hug and welcome you home”, said Kildee, who has continuously pushed Congress, the White House and others to work toward Hekmati’s release.

Ravanchi added that any possible mechanism for responding to such violations would be adopted after the supervisory team had submitted its report on the matter.

Defence Minister Hossein Dehghan said the new sanctions would have “no effect”, telling the Fars news agency: “We will prove it in practice by unveiling new missile achievements”. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran has controlled its nuclear undertakings.

He said Iran’s prospect for next year’s economic growth was at 5 percent up from 3 percent in the current fiscal year.

And he defended a separate settlement at an worldwide legal tribunal which will see the USA repay Iran $400m (£280m) in funds frozen since 1981 plus a further $1.3bn in interest – saying there was no point “dragging this out”.

Jason Rezaian was released over the weekend from an Iranian jail where he had been held for suspicion of espionage since the summer of 2014.

With sanctions lifted, Iran will now be able to significantly increase its oil exports, long the lifeblood of its economy. Again, a president that the world did not respect, in Jimmy Carter, and as soon as Ronald Reagan took the oath of office, those Iranians returned our citizens immediately because they knew if they didn’t they would face the strength of character and the wrath of Ronald Reagan.

The IAEA’s blessing to Iran’s peaceful nuclear program has unlocked economic and financial sanctions imposed on the country since 2006.

Rouhani on Sunday said the implementation of the nuclear deal – negotiated with the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia and Germany – had “opened a new chapter” in Iran’s relations with the world. Iran has not given up on its ambition to acquire a nuclear weapon, he said.

So no one should be surprised in the future if Iran – or some other bad actor – decides to grab visiting Americans off the street under false pretenses and then offer to release them in exchange for concessions by the United States.