Today, Sunday, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards unveiled a new naval ballistic missile, called "Zulfiqar Basir", with a range of 700 km.

Iranian media reported that the missile is the new generation of marine missiles, with a range of more than 700 km, and it is equipped with electro-optical sensor systems.

On Sunday, Tasnim agency published pictures of the new missile, loaded on a truck, on the sidelines of the opening of an exhibition in Tehran of the capabilities of the Revolutionary Guards' forces, Maj.

Islamic Revolution Guards Corps unveiled a new naval ballistic missile with a range of over 700 kilometershttps: //t.co/MbiHfHKAwC pic.twitter.com/rEw4GzzR7c

- Tasnim News Agency (@Tasnimnews_EN) September 27, 2020

This range is the farthest of the Iranian naval missiles, and it almost doubles the previous range (300 km) of the "Hormuz-2" missile, which Tehran announced its "successful" test in 2017.

Zulfiqar Basir is a new generation of Zulfiqar, a land of land whose range ranges between 700 and 750 km, and Tehran previously announced its use in targeting ISIS sites in Syria in 2018.

The official IRNA news agency also indicated that the Zulfiqar missile was used last January against military bases in Iraq where American soldiers were present, in response to the assassination of the commander of the Quds Force in the Revolutionary Guard, General Qassem Soleimani, by an American air strike near Baghdad Airport.

Tense atmosphere

The discovery of the missile comes about a week after the US Navy announced that the aircraft carrier "Nimitz" had crossed the strategic Strait of Hormuz on its way to the Gulf.

A few days ago, the Revolutionary Guard announced that its naval forces had received 188 new helicopters and drones.

The commander of the naval forces in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Admiral Ali Reza Tengsiri, told the Iranian news agency Tasnim that all these helicopters and drones were manufactured in Iran.

The Revolutionary Guards also revealed this week the inauguration of a new naval base that provides "complete foresight" of the strait through which a fifth of international oil exports pass.

The Iranian missile program raises the concern of several Western countries, especially the United States, which accuses Tehran of seeking to increase the range of its missiles and destabilize the Middle East.

In contrast, Iran maintains that its programs are defensive objectives.

The relationship between Washington and Tehran has been tense, especially since 2018, when the administration of US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement between Iran and the six major powers on the Iranian nuclear program, and re-imposed harsh economic sanctions on Tehran.

And this month, Washington unilaterally announced the activation of the "Snapback" mechanism to re-impose UN sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the nuclear agreement, but this step received international criticism, especially from other signatories to the agreement (France, Britain, Russia, China, Germany). ), Which considered that the US move has no legal basis.

In mid-August, Washington received a major setback in the Security Council, when it tried to extend the arms embargo on Tehran, which expires on October 18, according to the nuclear agreement.