TEHRAN, May 23 (RIA Novosti) - Iran is prepared to withstand any foreign military attack and will repel decisively any form of aggression, Iranian media said Wednesday citing the country's defense minister.

"Islamic Iran will counter any threats from abroad using its Armed Forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, and will give a destructive response to enemies and aggressors," Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said.

His statement comes in light of U.S. naval maneuvers off Iran's coast as the United States Wednesday beefed up its military presence in the Gulf deploying two aircraft carriers and landing ships packed with some 17,000 Marines.

The U.S. has included Iran along with North Korea in President George W. Bush's "axis of evil," with Tehran consistently defying international calls to suspend uranium enrichment, which would bring it closer to acquiring a nuclear weapon, while Pyongyang tested a nuclear device in October 2006.