Dissatisfied with the Revolutionary Guards being listed as a terrorist organization, Iran takes similar measures against the Argentine Navy and Air Force

Argentina announced in April that it designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization. (Reuters)

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on the 11th that Iran has listed the Argentine Navy and Air Force as terrorist organizations. Iran's move was a countermeasure to Argentina's designation of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization in April.

According to Reuters, Argentina announced in April that it would designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization because of its support for the Lebanon-based Hezbollah. Argentina accuses Hezbollah of bombing the Argentine Israeli Mutual Aid Association (AMIA) Jewish community center in the capital Buenos Aires in 1994, killing 85 people and injuring hundreds.

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a statement on the 11th that Iran regards the Argentine Navy and Air Force as terrorist organizations based on the "principle of reciprocity." The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that all consequences arising from this matter will be borne by the Argentine government.

In order to further clarify the possible follow-up impact of considering the Argentine Navy and Air Force as terrorist organizations, Iranian diplomacy did not mention the Argentine Army in the statement.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is an elite military force responsible for defending Iran's regime dominated by Shia Muslim religious leaders and controlling a large part of Iran's economy. The United States designated the Revolutionary Guards as a Foreign Terrorist Organization as early as April 15, 2019. The difference between foreign terrorist organizations and generally known terrorist organizations is that the former is a formal legal classification under the US legal system, while the latter is a broader descriptive term.

According to Section 219 of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act, in order to designate an organization as a foreign terrorist organization, the organization must meet three conditions. The first condition is that it must be a foreign organization, the second condition is that it engages in terrorist activities or has corresponding capabilities, and the third condition is that it threatens the national security of the United States.