Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said yesterday Iran had tested a missile that defence analysts say could hit Israel and US bases in the Gulf, a move likely to fuel western concern about Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
Mr Ahmadinejad announced the test on the day campaigning for the June 12th Iranian presidential election officially began.
A US defence official also confirmed the launch. One western expert saw the missile test as Iran’s response to Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s visit to the US this week.
Coming a day after Iran’s supreme leader accused the US of promoting terrorism, the test may further disappoint US president Barack Obama’s administration, which is seeking rapprochement with Iran after three decades of mutual mistrust. Mr Obama has offered a new beginning of diplomatic engagement with Iran if it “unclenches its fist”.
Mr Ahmadinejad, whose moderate challengers in the election accuse him of isolating Iran with his anti-western speeches, said the country had the power to send any attacker “to hell”. He was addressing a rally in the northern Semnan province, where the official Irna news agency said the test took place.
The stated range of the surface-to-surface missile – some 2,000km (1,240 miles) – would be almost as far as another Iranian missile, Shahab 3. Analysts say such weaponry could reach Israel, US regional bases and southeastern Europe.
A report by the joint US-Russian think tank EastWest Institute said Iran could develop a basic nuclear device in one to three years and a missile-borne nuclear warhead five years after that, but there was no proof of such intent and Iran was unlikely to start a nuclear conflict.
But it says a Europe-based missile shield proposed by the US against a perceived Iranian threat will not work and should be scrapped.