Iran has designated Argentina’s Navy and Air Force as terrorist organisations, escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries following Buenos Aires’ decision to blacklist an Iranian military unit earlier this year.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry announced the designation on Wednesday, invoking a 2019 law that allows Tehran to take retaliatory measures against countries that classify its armed forces as terrorist organisations.
In a statement, the ministry said, “Tehran deems the Argentine Navy and the Argentine Air Force subject to the aforementioned law and its provisions, and designates them as terrorist organisations.”
In late March, Argentina designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an ideological arm of the country’s military, as a terrorist organisation over its alleged support for Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant group.
Buenos Aires also accused the IRGC of involvement in the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community centre in Argentina’s capital, Buenos Aires.
The attack killed 85 people and left hundreds of others injured.
Iran had made a similar move against the United Kingdom earlier this month, designating its intelligence agency, MI6, as a hostile organisation and classifying the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as terrorist organisations.
The decision followed Britain’s designation of Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist organisation in July.
