Iran’s army test fired a sophisticated short-range missile on Sunday, The Associated Press reported, citing the Iranian official IRNA news agency.
The chief of the army’s ground forces, Gen. Kioumars Heidari, was quoted as saying that the missile’s range was 300 kilometers, or 186 miles.
Gen. Heidari said the “smart” missile is capable to work in under “any weather condition.” He did not say where the test took place.
Iran’s army controls short-range missiles, although longer-range ones capable of travelling up to 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) are controlled by the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
Iran’s ballistic missile tests and satellite launches are a cause of concern for the West and particularly the US, which has argued that Iran’s ballistic missile tests are a violation of UN Security Council resolution 2231.
The resolution, which enshrined the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, says Iran is “called upon” to refrain for up to eight years from work on ballistic missiles designed to deliver nuclear weapons.
Iran denies its ballistic missile tests violate this resolution. President Hassan Rouhani has stressed in the past that Iran will continue to produce missiles for its defense and does not consider that a violation of international agreements.
Sunday’s report comes days after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard began a ground forces drill near the Iraqi border.
The drill comes amid ongoing tensions between the US and Iran and is the latest Iran has held as it tries to pressure President Joe Biden over the 2015 nuclear deal.
In a similar drill this past July, the Revolutionary Guard launched missiles targeting a mock aircraft carrier in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Former US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 agreement nearly three years ago and reimposed sanctions on Iran. The Islamic Republic, in turn, has gradually scaled back its compliance with the 2015 deal.
Biden has expressed a desire to return to the 2015 agreement but has stressed he would return to the 2015 agreement if Iran returned to compliance with it.
Iran has repeatedly made clear that it will not renegotiate the original agreement.
(Arutz 7).
