Iran's 'shameful' reaction to German Foreign Minister Wadephul

Tehran's response to German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul's statement that Iran should bear the cost of any international operation to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz was swift.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei, in a message shared on his social media account, described Wadephul's statement as an "ugly distortion of the truth," comparing it to the rhetoric of Mephistopheles, the demonic character in Goethe's Faust.

Baghaei stated, "The German Foreign Minister's remarks regarding the Strait of Hormuz are completely shameful." Alleging that Germany plays a role in attacks against Iran, Baghaei added, "Germany must be held fully accountable for its complicity in military aggression against Iran and must bear the heavy price of its active participation in the crime of aggression.

No matter how aggressive a stance the Berlin regime adopts, it cannot escape its responsibility for the role it has played in this illegal war and the war crimes committed against the Iranian people," he assessed.

Wadephul had blamed Iran regarding the Strait of Hormuz

In an interview with the Handelsblatt newspaper, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul had claimed that Iran had "illegally" mined the Strait of Hormuz, an international shipping route. Stating that Iran should bear the cost of any international operation to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz, Wadephul said, "In principle, this would be a justified demand. Iran should pay the bill because we would be compensating for the damage caused by the regime."