TEHRAN – *Iran has responded over the Reuters report that Tehran has movedmissiles to Iraq. *

*Iran rejected the report saying it aimed to hurt Iran’s ties withneighbors, the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported.*

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Twitter he was “deeply concerned”by the reports that Iran was transferring ballistic missiles into Iraq. Heurged Iraqi leaders to quickly form a new government after a May 12parliamentary election.

“Such false and ridiculous news have no purpose other than affecting Iran’sforeign relations, especially with its neighbors,” Foreign Ministryspokesman Bahram Qassemi said, according to IRNA.

Iranian, Iraqi and Western sources told Reuters that Iran has givenballistic missiles to Shi’ite proxies in Iraq and is developing thecapacity to build more there.

“This news is solely aimed at creating fears in the countries of theregion,” Qassemi added.

Pompeo, in his tweet on the reports of the transfer of the missiles, said,“If true, this would be a gross violation of Iraqi sovereignty and of UNSCR2231.”