Speaking during a live televised interview on Saturday, IRGC Brigadier General Hossein Salami, said Iran’s Armed Forces are determined to defend the Iranian territorial integrity and national interests in case of any invasion.
The IRGC commander said US Marines incident was a determining development in the region, because it made all foreign forces face a new reality and change their assessment of the power of the Islamic Republic of Iran in defending its territorial integrity and vital interests.
“We will continue to boost our defense capability and our missiles will be updated day by day,” Salami said, adding that Iran reserves the right to develop conventional weapons in order to “defend its independence and territorial integrity.”
On January 13, the IRGC announced that ten US Marines, who had drifted into the country's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf near Farsi Island and had been taken into Iranian custody, had been released after Americans apologized for the incident.
On January 20, US Secretary of State John Kerry thanked Iranian authorities for their cooperation in the release of US Navy sailors.