Defense News - Iran

The Iranian Defense Ministry started mass-production of 73-mm anti-armor rockets capable of piercing and destroying armored vehicles from a 1,300-meter distance.

New Iranian anti-armour rocket

"The weapon is mobile and due to its low weight, it can be carried by an individual trooper," Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi told reporters on the sidelines of a ceremony held to launch the production line of the rocket on Monday.

Stressing the importance and efficiency of the anti-armor rocket in land and tactical operations, Vahidi said the rocket also enjoys a high precision and high penetration power.

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.

The Iranian Army recently test-fired different types of newly-developed missiles and torpedoes and tested a large number of its home-made weapons, tools and equipments, including submarines, military ships, artillery, choppers, aircraft, UAVs and air defense and electronic systems, in a series of massive military drills.

Defense analysts and military observers say that Iran's wargames and its advancements in weapons production have proved as a deterrent factor, specially at a time of heightened threats by the US.