Russia Begins Tor-M1 Deliveries to Iran
November 24, 2006 :: AFP :: News
Russia has begun deliveries of the Tor-M1 air defense rocket system to Iran, according to Russian news sources. Itar-Tass quotes an unnamed, high-ranking Russian military industry source as stating, “Deliveries of the Tor-M1 have begun. The first systems have already been delivered to Tehran.” The Tor-M1 is a low to medium-altitude missile fired from a tracked vehicle against airplanes, helicopters, and other airborne targets. Itar-Tass reported that the rockets are to be deployed around Iran’s nuclear sites, including the still incomplete, Russian-built atomic power station at Bushehr. Moscow has consistently defended its arms exports to Iran. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said the contract for 29 Tor-M1 systems, signed in December last year, was legitimate because the rockets have a purely defensive role. The U.S., however, has pressed Russia to halt military sales to Iran, which Washington believes is building nuclear weapons. In August, the U.S. announced sanctions against several companies, including the major Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport, for supplying technology to Iran that could allegedly be used to develop missile technology and weapons of mass destruction. A spokesman for Rosoboronexport contacted by the AFP would not confirm or deny the reports about the Tor-M1 delivery. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Proliferation
Polish Daily: Romania and U.K. Supercede Poland in Missile Defense “Game”
October 11, 2006 :: BBC Worldwide Monitoring :: News
Poland has been superceded by Romania and the United Kingdom in the “game” for a new U.S. missile defense site, writes Eugeniusz Janula in the Polish daily Trybuna. “When one glances at a world atlas,” writes Janula, “there is not the slightest doubt that the most convenient location for an installation of this type is in the region of northern Norway or the U.K.’s Orkney or Shetland Islands.” From these locations, the U.S. could effectively intercept missiles coming in from the Middle East and South Asia, such as from Iran, as well as from the Kola Peninsula where Russia has deployed a considerable portion of its missile arsenal. Yet Norway declined and the U.K. likewise did not show much enthusiasm. So the U.S. began confidential talks with Poland and the Czech Republic. According to Janula, “the Czechs quickly realized that they were not the objective,” since a missile defense base built on their territory would not have “universal application.” In the case of Poland, “the Americans might discuss many things, but they would never consent to any control over such an important base,” and thus “Poland has dropped out of the game.” Janula claims that the U.S. now plans to set up a “small, temporary base with 8-10 semi-stationary launchers” in Romania, which will serve as a purely anti-Iranian installation. More importantly, he writes, the U.K. has revised its stance and will now make the Orkney Islands accessible for a “second base of universal application.” For this, the British will obtain “state-of-the-art nuclear submarine technologies, the naval version of the F-35 plane which will supplant the Harriers on British aircraft carriers, as well as other technological benefits.” (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Russia, Iran, Allies
» Missile system details for: Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD)
Iran Navy Commander Suggests New Submarines, Missiles
October 7, 2006 :: BBC Worldwide Monitoring :: News
On September 25, the Iranian newspaper Mardom-Salari published an interview with Admiral Sajjad Kuchaki, commander of the Iranian Navy, who stated that “various types of a new generation of Iranian-manufactured submarines will join the Persian Gulf fleet soon, with all kinds of advanced missiles and torpedoes installed on them.” The Admiral did not provide any further specifics about these new submarines, missiles, and torpedoes. He did, however, note that “our underwater units undertake full surveillance of the foreign forces and monitor them from very close distances, less than one or two kilometers,” adding that “our units even passed beneath the American aircraft carrier, but they did not notice.” He warned “any country that intends to start the slightest aggression against our country to get well-informed about the eight-year holy defense experience,” a reference to the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s, which resulted in over one million casualties. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran
Iran Parades Shahab-3 Missiles in Tehran
September 22, 2006 :: AP :: News
Iran held a large military parade on September 22, marking the twenty-sixth anniversary of the Iran-Iraq War. The procession took place in southern Tehran near the shrine of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the father of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and included two medium-range Shahab-3 ballistic missiles. The Shahab-3 is believed to have a range of between 1,200 and 2,000 km, and is capable of targeting Israel, Turkey, the Indian subcontinent, and U.S. forces stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Persian Gulf. Zelzal 1 and Nazeat missiles were also present, as well as battle tanks. Iranian Vice President Parviz Davoodi oversaw the parade, standing in for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who was in New York to address the U.N. General Assembly. In his speech, Davoodi stated that Iran’s armed forces would fight back “like lightning” against any attack from the enemies. “We can defend our motherland and the Islam, we want peace but we tell the expansionists not to try to launch an aggression against Iran,” he said. Iran conducted a similar parade on September 22 last year. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran
» Missile details: Shahab-6, Zelzal-1/2/3
Jane’s: Iran Developing New Long-Range Missile
September 13, 2006 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
Iran is developing a new missile with a range of 4,000 to 5,000 km, reports the September 13 issue of Jane’s Defence Weekly. The article quotes Western diplomatic sources, who state that Iran’s Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group (SHIG), which is responsible for the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile programs, is currently developing a long-range carrier independent of the Shahab family of missiles. Known as “Project Koussar,” the program is attempting to reverse-engineer an RD-216 engine, probably acquired from Russia in the late 1990s. The RD-216 powered Russia’s now obsolete SS-5 “Skean” (R-14/8K65) intermediate-range ballistic missiles and SL-8 Cosmos satellite launch vehicles. Jane’s notes that “Project Koussar” is believed to be in the preliminary design review stage, and quotes sources stating that Iran is making progress in the RD-215 reverse engineering. (Link)
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Pentagon: Video of Iranian Missile Test Is Fake
September 11, 2006 :: LA Times :: News
U.S. military intelligence has determined that a video released by the Iranian government purporting to show a successful recent test of a submarine-launched missile is in fact fake, reports the Los Angeles Times. According to three Pentagon officials, the plume of smoke from the missile matched a video of an earlier Chinese test. The fake video was released on August 27, broadcast on Iranian state television, and picked up around the world, including by CNN and Fox News. Admiral Sajjad Kouchaki, the top Iranian naval commander, had stated that the weapon, known as Sagheb (“penetrating” or “piercing” in Farsi), was a long-range missile that could be fired from a variety of ships and evade radar. Regional experts speculate that the fake video had been designed to intimidate Iran’s neighbors in the Persian Gulf, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which are U.S. allies. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Testing - Foreign
U.S. Seeks to Block New Missiles for Hezbollah
September 6, 2006 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
The U.S. is helping Israel prevent Hezbollah from receiving shipments of new missiles to replace the thousands fired or destroyed in the recent 34-day conflict, reports the October 1 issue of Jane’s Missiles and Rockets. The Lebanese-based terrorist organization is currently being resupplied by Iran across Syria’s mountainous western border with Lebanon into the Bekaa Valley, Hezbollah’s strategic center and the location of its main command centers and missile arsenals. Despite massive Israeli air strikes destroying virtually all the bridges and road networks in the region, Israel believes that Iranian missiles are still moving across the Syrian-Lebanese border, mostly along ancient smuggling trails. The U.S. has called for the support of regional allies such as Turkey and Iraq, and has pressured key global arms suppliers such as Russia and China to ensure that these missiles do not reach the Hezbollah. Sources indicate that at least two aircraft flying from Iran to Damascus have been challenged by aviation authorities in Iraq and Turkey, one on July 20 and another two days later. On August 17, seven transports—six Iranian and one Syrian—were forced to land at Dyarbakir, Turkey, after U.S. satellites spotted missiles, including C-802 anti-ship cruise missiles, and launchers being loaded onto them in Iran. According to Israel, however, some flights carrying weapons for Hezbollah have made it to Syria, and have possibly crossed the border into Lebanon. (Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Israel, Proliferation, Syria
U.S. Traces North Korean Money to Russia
August 30, 2006 :: Kommersant :: News
Kommersant reports that the U.S. may soon accuse Russia of benefiting financially from North Korea’s missile proliferation. Russian firms may be helping North Korea to develop missile technology, which Pyongyang then sells to nations such as Iran, Syria, and Pakistan. Once the sales are completed, the North Koreans deposit their proceeds in Russian banks. The article hints that Pyongyang may be running out of foreign accounts to store its proliferation proceeds due to U.S. pressure on Vietnam and China to freeze North Korean assets, and therefore has turned to the former Soviet Union. Peter Beck, head of the International Crisis Group, told Kommersant yesterday that Russia is “the last financial refuge for the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea.” Japanese media sources reported last week that North Korea had opened new bank accounts in ten different countries, including Russia, which lends credibility to Beck’s argument.
Kommersant speculates that North Korea may be using the accounts of its embassy in Moscow to transfer funds. If this is true, it means that Pyongyang could be stashing its proliferation proceeds in Vneshtorgbank, which services the diplomatic missions in Moscow. Another possible recipient of North Korean assets is Vneshekonombank, which reached an interstate agreement with North Korea in the mid-1980s and opened “accounts on objects of technical cooperation and military-technical cooperation” with Pyongyang in 1992. Kommersant reports that Vneshekonombank still has several accounts with the Foreign Trade Bank of North Korea. Beck adds that U.S. officials see “a high degree of likelihood” in Russian financial dealing with North Korea, which could further sour relations between the two nations vis-à-vis Iran, a primary benefactor of North Korean missile proliferation. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran, North Korea, Proliferation, Russia
Iran Test Launches Sub-to-Surface Missile
August 27, 2006 :: AP :: News
Iran test launched a new submarine-to-surface missile today during war games in the Persian Gulf. The missile, called Thaqeb or Saturn, was shown in a video clip as exiting the water and hitting a target on the water’s surface within less than a mile. General Sajjad Kouchaki, the Iranian Navy Commander, said on Iranian state-run television that the Thaqeb could be fired from any vessel and could escape enemy radar. He added that the missile was based on domestic know-how, although outside experts say much of the country’s missile technology originated from other countries like Russia and China. Kouchaki did not give the weapon’s range, or its intended warhead. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: Iran, Testing - Foreign
China: Hezbollah Missile Link “Impossible”
August 23, 2006 :: AFP :: News
Chinese regulations make it “impossible” for a missile China sold to Iran to be passed on to Lebanon’s Hezbollah forces, a senior Chinese diplomat claimed yesterday. Sun Bigan, China’s special envoy to the Middle East, told reporters that China has never exported arms to Hezbollah, including the radar guided C-802 (CSS-N-8) anti-ship cruise missile that Hezbollah fired at an Israeli warship on July 14. “I think the information or the news is not accurate about the use of Chinese weapons in the Lebanon-Israel battlefield,” Sun said. “I have taken note of these reports. The information itself is groundless.” Sun, however, did not rule out the possibility that these weapons may have been transferred to Hezbollah by a third party. “China does have some normal arms trade with some countries, however, the arms trade is with sovereign states. China does not provide weapons to any organizations, groups, or [political] parties.” He added that if Chinese weapons had in fact been transferred to another entity, China would be “very concerned,” but as far as he knew Beijing had not launched an investigation into the matter. (Article, Link)
» More stories on: China, Iran, Proliferation, Terrorism
