Iran to unveil new cruise missile

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi announced on Friday that Tehran would soon unveil a new cruise missile called 'Zafar (Triumph)."We unveiled the Qader cruise missiles in the Week of Sacred Defense and we plan to showcase Zafar which is a new cruise missile in the near future," Vahidi told reporters in the Western city of Hamedan today. "We also have other plans in area of ballistic missiles which will be unveiled once their production phases are complete," he added. Iran has made giant progress in arms production, specially in area of missile technology, in the last decade. Iran's latest cruise missile production, Qader (Mighty), was displayed to the public during the military parades marking the Week of Sacred Defense in September. Later in September, the Iranian Defense Ministry supplied large numbers of the Qader anti-ship cruise missiles to the Iranian Army's and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) naval forces to boost Iran's naval defense power. Addressing the ceremony, also attended by Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari and Commander of the IRGC Naval Force Brigadier General Ali Fadavi, Vahidi said that Iran has managed to mass-produce the missile in the shortest time possible. He stressed that production of the missiles showed that the Iranian Defense Industries are able to satiate the Iranian Armed Forces' missile needs. As regards the features and specifications of the new missile, Vahidi said Qader is an anti-ship cruise missile with a range of 200km and enjoys a short launch time and is able to hit all naval vessels, including frigates and warships, as well as onshore enemy targets. Tehran launched an arms development program during the 1980-88 Iraqi imposed war on Iran to compensate for a US weapons embargo. Since 1992, Iran has produced its own tanks, armored personnel carriers, missiles and fighter planes. Yet, Iranian officials have always stressed that the country's military and arms programs serve defensive purposes and should not be perceived as a threat to any other country.