Iran has unveiled what officials described as its first hypersonic ballistic missile, state news agency IRNA reported on Tuesday, an announcement likely to exacerbate Western concerns about Tehran’s missile capabilities.
Iranian official media published pictures of the alleged missile, which bore the name Fattah, during a ceremony attended by Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi and senior leaders of the Revolutionary Guards.
Iranian media quoted the commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ Aerospace Force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, as saying, “The Fattah missile has a range of 1,400 kilometers and is capable of passing all missile defense systems.”
Hypersonic missiles can fly at speeds at least five times faster than the speed of sound and in complex trajectories, making them difficult to intercept.
Last year, Iran said it had built a hypersonic ballistic missile capable of maneuvering in and out of the atmosphere.
State television stated that the Fatah missile is capable of targeting “the enemy’s anti-missile systems, and is considered a major leap in the field of missiles.”
He said, “It can pass the most advanced missile defense systems of the United States and Israel, including the Israeli Iron Dome system.”
He added that the maximum speed of the missile is 15,000 kilometers per hour.
Despite US and European objections, Iran says it will develop its missile defense programme. On the other hand, Western military analysts say that Iran sometimes exaggerates the capabilities of its missiles.
Concerns about Iran’s ballistic missiles contributed to then-US President Donald Trump’s decision in 2018 to withdraw from the nuclear agreement between Tehran and the six major world powers.
Trump reimposed sanctions on Iran after withdrawing from the deal, prompting Tehran to resume previously banned nuclear work and reviving fears in the United States, Europe and Israel that Iran might seek to build an atomic bomb, an ambition Iran has long denied.
Indirect talks between Tehran and US President Joe Biden’s administration to save the nuclear deal have stopped since last September.
Israel, which Iran refuses to recognize, opposes efforts by world powers to revive the nuclear deal with Tehran and has long threatened military action if diplomacy fails.
“I hear our enemies boast about the weapons they are developing,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Tuesday. “We have a better response to any such development, be it on land, in the air or at sea, including defensive and offensive means.”
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2023-06-06 21:29:37
