The Iranians announced that they could hit targets all over Southwest Asia and even southern Europe with their new Shahab-3 rocket, the AP reports:

Iran can launch a missile as far as 2,000 km (1,250 miles), a senior official was quoted as saying Tuesday, substantially increasing the announced range of the Islamic state's military capabilities.

Such a missile would be capable of hitting Israel or parts of southeastern Europe. Iran says its missiles are for purely defensive purposes and would be used to counter a possible Israeli strike against its nuclear facilities.

"Now we have the power to launch a missile with a 2,000 km range," IRNA quoted influential former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as saying. "Iran is determined to improve its military capabilities."

The only way Iran could consider the Shahab-3 a defensive weapon is if they think the combat front exists at the borders of the old Ottoman Empire, or in Tel Aviv. Both are the intended targets of the Shahab-3 and the Iranian mullahcracy. Despite their insistence that they have no desire for nuclear weapons or other WMD, the truth is that they now have a payload system for delivering them that far exceeds the capacity of the Hussein regime at its peak, with its creaky Soviet-era Scud missiles.

What does the US plan to do about this? The Bush administration keeps pressing the EU-3 to force the IAEA to the UN Security Council so that deadlines for compliance on nuclear proliferation can be set. John Kerry wants to give the mullahs nuclear material in exchange for a promise not to stick it in the Shahab-3s -- or to give it to Hezbollah or Islamic Jihad -- and then sit back and see how they handle it.

Which option makes you feel safer at night?

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry is

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Plus A Bit Of Extra Room For That Free Nuclear "Fuel" At The Top:

» Iranian missiles from A Physicist's Perspective
Captain's Quarters reports that Iran's new rockets can hit Israel or southeastern Europe -- far more than would be needed for any sort of "defensive" weapon. Captain Ed adds this: What does the US plan to do about this? The Bush administration ke... [Read More]

Tracked on October 5, 2004 10:14 AM