TEHRAN, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry on Monday denied that it has been holding talks with powers including France over its ballistic missile program.
"There has been no talks about our missile program with any country," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said in his weekly press conference.
On Friday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that France might impose sanctions on Iran if no progress was made in talks over Tehran's missile program.
"We are ready, if the talks don't yield results, to apply sanctions firmly, and they know it," Le Drian said.
"Every six months, Tehran and Paris hold talks over a wide range of topics related to mutual relations, including political and economic.... Iran holds the same talks with other European countries," Qasemi said.
"We would never talk with any country over our missile program. This is our country's policy," he stressed.
The Iranian spokesman reiterated that Iran's defensive programs are for deterrence purposes.
On Saturday, Qasemi said that Iran's missile capability is not negotiable, and the issue has been brought to the attention of the French side during the ongoing political dialogue between the two countries.
