Iranian Test-Launch Missiles Not New: US Official
The missile test-launches carried out by Iran in recent days did not showcase anything in the way of new capabilities, and may not actually have featured one missile said to have been included, a US official has said.
Shahab-3 Missile
Officials in Iran said that the July 9th/10th launches included an "upgraded" Shahab-3 missile which, with a 2,000+ kilometre range, would be able to strike a large proportion of the Middle East.
However, according to ArmsControlWonk.com - an independently-run national security website - the missiles shown in broadcast coverage of the launches were exactly the same as a Shahab-variant known to have been in existence for a decade, and believed to have a 1,200 kilometre range.
A new blog entry on the site, entitled "Same old boring Shahab 3", examined the missile's dimensions in comparison to each other, concluding that they were equivalent to the variant shown ten years ago.
Consequently, unless the new missile possessed the same ratio between its length and its width, unless significant changes were made to its powerplant or its weight reduced, it could not be capable of achieving the distances claimed by Iran, said the website.
"Iran frequently exaggerates the capability of its missiles, and it appears it is continuing that tradition with this week's tests", the Union of Concerned Scientists Global Security Program's Co-Director, David Wright, said.
US Intelligence
The US official discussing the trials - the identity of whom was not provided - described how the Iranian missiles sent aloft this week ranged from short- to medium-range weapons. He added that US intelligence sources had not been able to identify them exactly as of yet.
According to Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell, the significance of the trials was not being taken lightly.
"We don't believe this exercise to have been an illusion", he stated.
On the subject of the missiles themselves, however, he commented: "They were not testing new technologies or capabilities, but rather firing off old equipment in an attempt to intimidate their neighbours and escalate tension in the region.
"That is not the way to win the trust and confidence of the national community."
Source - Armed Forces International's US Correspondent
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