Region | Iran
Iran tests new short-range missile
Iran test-fired ten surface-to-surface short-range missiles yesterday, as a military training plane crashed outside the capital after catching fire, state-run television reported.
- Agencies
- Published: 00:00 August 21, 2006
Tehran: Iran test-fired ten surface-to-surface short-range missiles yesterday, as a military training plane crashed outside the capital after catching fire, state-run television reported.
The missile testing came a day after Iran launched a series of large-scale military manoeuvres geared at testing the country's new defence doctrine.
"Saegheh, the missile, has a range of between 80 to 250 kilometres," the television said.
It said the missile was tested in the Kashan desert, about 250km southeast of the Iranian capital, Tehran. Saegheh means lightning in Farsi.
State television did not specify whether the new missile was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, but it was not believed to.
Only the Shahab-3 missile tested last is believed to be capable of carrying a warhead.
State-run TV also reported that a small military training plane had crashed yesterday. The plane was not taking part in the military manoeuvres, the TV said, stating the crash was due to technical failures.
The broadcast said the plane was making an emergency landing on a highway in northeast Tehran when one of its wings hit a water reservoir and it burst into flames and crashed.
The television said the only pilot in the plane parachuted safely.
The crash was the latest in a string of plane accidents the Iranian government has blamed on US sanctions, arguing that they have prevented the country from repairing and replacing its ageing fleet. Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iran has supplemented its fleet of Boeing and European-made Airbus airliners with planes bought or leased from the former Soviet Union.
Iran routinely holds war games to test the military equipment it builds at home since the US ban was enforced and the army has held war games with equipment such as missiles, tanks and armoured personnel carriers.
But the new tests, in the wake of the Lebanon-Hezbollah fighting against Israel, seemed certain to create new tensions with the West.
The Iranian military said the manoeuvres reflected the current level of tension in the Middle East. "We have to be prepared against any threat and we should be a role model for other countries," local newspapers quoted army spokesman General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani, as saying earlier this week.
He said the military manoeuvres called "The Blow of Zolfaghar" in reference to a sword that belonged to Imam Ali were aimed at "introducing Iran's new defensive doctrine."
State-run television said the missile was built based on domestic know-how, although outside experts say much of the country's missile technology originated from other countries.
State-run TV showed video showing 10 missiles being launched from mobile launching pads.
Iran said its military exercises launched on Saturday are being held in 14 of the country's 30 provinces and could last as long as five weeks.
The Islamic Republic, which views the United States as an arch foe, is concerned about the US military presence in neighbouring Iraq and Afghanistan.
It also has expressed worry about Israeli threats to destroy its nuclear facilities, which the West contends could be used to make a bomb but which Iran insists are for civilian uses only.
Iran is already equipped with the Shahab-3 missile, which means "shooting star" in Farsi, and is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. An upgraded version of the ballistic missile has a range of more than 2,000km and can reach Israel and US forces in the Middle East.
Last year, former Defence Minister Ali Shamkhani said Tehran had successfully tested a solid fuel motor for the Shahab-3, a technological breakthrough for the country's military.
Nuclear row: Tehran will not suspend enrichment
Iran said yesterday it would not suspend uranium enrichment, ruling out the main demand in a nuclear package backed by six world powers that aims to allay Western fears Tehran is seeking to build atomic bombs.
Iran says it will formally respond by Tuesday to proposals made by the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany. The six have offered incentives for Iran to suspend enrichment.
Tehran, which insists its nuclear aims are purely civilian, shows no sign of accepting the package.
"We are not going to suspend [enrichment]. The issue was that everything should come out of negotiations, but suspension of uranium enrichment is not on our agenda," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a weekly news conference.
"As the proposal has had several dimensions, our answer will be multi-dimensional too," Asefi said, suggesting Iran will not give a clear 'yes' or 'no'.
News Editor's choice
-
Ukraine leaders fight over Russian language
Violence erupts in Ukraine parliament over a bill to allow use of Russian language in courts, hospitals
-
CBSE: 100% success in many UAE schools
6,000 students from 53 schools meet grade expectations in examinations
-
'I can’t believe he is not going to come back'
Seventeen-year-old boy went missing in Dubai during a visit from Pakistan
