TEHRAN, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that Iran's missile program has been developed to defend the country's sovereignty and is "non-negotiable."

He made the remarks at a weekly press conference in response to a question about whether recent reports in U.S. media, regarding Israel's plans to prepare the ground for a possible new military action against Iran, were intended to pressure the country into acquiescing to negotiations over its missile program.

Citing unidentified sources, NBC News reported on Saturday that at a meeting later this month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would seek to convince U.S. President Donald Trump that "Iran's expansion of its ballistic missile program poses a threat that could necessitate swift action."

Baghaei said, "Iran's missile program has been developed to solely defend the country's sovereignty and is basically not a subject of negotiation. Iran's defense capabilities have been designed to prevent aggressors from harboring the idea of attacking the country and are in no way something that can be negotiated or bargained about."

He slammed the West's "clear hypocrisy" regarding Iran's missile capabilities, stressing that Western powers and Israel were trying to present Iran's missile program as a "threat" whereas it was concurrently seen that large quantities of arms were being delivered to Israel.

On June 13, Israel launched surprise airstrikes on several areas in Iran, including nuclear and military sites, killing senior commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians. On June 22, U.S. forces bombed the three Iranian nuclear facilities of Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan. ■