Iran announces that it has successfully tested a new ballistic missile

2023-05-25 20:34:50, Kosova & Bota CNA

Iran has successfully launched a ballistic missile with a range of up to 2,000 kilometers, state media reported Thursday, two days after Israel's armed forces chief mentioned the possibility of taking action against Tehran over its nuclear program. Iran has one of the largest missile programs in the Middle East, and says its weapons are capable of hitting bases in the region of Israel and the United States.

Iranian state television broadcast a few seconds of what appears to be a test launch of the upgraded Khoramshahr 4 ballistic missile. The missile has a range of up to 2,000 kilometers and can carry a 1,500 kg payload.

Despite the objections of the United States and European countries, the Islamic Republic has declared that it will further develop its "defense" program with missiles.

State news agency IRNA said the liquid-fueled missile will be renamed "Kheibar", after an Israeli fortress taken by Muslim fighters in the early days of Islam. According to IRNA, the domestically produced missile is ready for launch in a short time, thus being not only a strategic but also a tactical weapon.

"In the framework of increasing the missile capabilities of the Islamic Republic of Iran, we present today the new strategic ballistic missile Khoramshahr 4, which is an updated version of the previous missiles. One of the distinguishing features of this missile is that it avoids radars and can penetrate through enemy air defense systems ," Iranian Defense Minister General Mohammad Reza Gharaei Ashtiani said in Tehran on Thursday.

Israel, whose existence is not recognized by the Islamic Republic, considers Iran as a threat to its existence. Iran says its ballistic missiles are an important deterrent and punitive force against the United States, Israel and other potential adversaries in the region.

On Tuesday, Israel's top general raised the possibility of taking military action against Iran as efforts by the six world powers to restore the 2015 nuclear deal have stalled since September as the West worries about Tehran's accelerating nuclear progress. .

The deal, which Washington withdrew from in 2018, placed limits on Iran's nuclear activities by extending the time it would take for Iran to produce enough nuclear material for a nuclear weapon, should it decide to do so. Iran denies that it is trying to produce nuclear weapons./ VOA