DUBAI – Iran has successfully test fired a new short-range missile equipped with a guidance system it plans to install on all future missiles it builds, Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi said Saturday. “With the fourth-generation of the Fateh 110, the armed forces of our country are able to target and destroy land and sea targets, enemy headquarters ... missile seats, ammunition sites, radars and other points,” Vahidi said. The Fateh 110 has a range of around 300 km, news agency IRNA reported, meaning it would only be able to strike Iran's immediate neighbors. “Using new guidance methods, target-striking systems were installed on the missiles and during the flight test... its ability to hit the target without deviation was proven,” Vahidi said. “In future programs all future missiles built by the Defense Ministry will be equipped with this capability,” he added. Iran's military leaders have said they believe future wars will be air- and sea-based and Tehran has sought to upgrade its air defense systems and naval power in anticipation of such a possibility. The Pentagon released a report in June noting significant advances in Iranian missile technology, acknowledging that Tehran has improved the accuracy and firing capabilities of its missiles. The Fateh-110, or Conqueror, is a single-stage solid-propellant, surface-to-surface missile put into service in 2002. The earlier version of the domestically-produced missile had a range of 200 kilometers. The weapon was developed by Iran's Aerospace Industries Organization. Iran also has a variety of longer-ranged missiles including a Shahab-3 variant with a range of 2,000 kilometers that can reach southern Europe. Many of its missiles could in theory carry a nuclear warhead. Iranian officials have threatened in the past to close the Strait of Hormuz, the neck of the Gulf through which 40 percent of the world's sea-borne oil exports pass, in retaliation for sanctions levied against its crude exports, or military action. Such a move would risk a military response from the United States. Vahidi also said the missile was intended as a defensive weapon. “These capabilities are defensive and would only be used against aggressors and those who threaten the country's interests and territorial integrity,” he said. – Agencies
