Iran claims it can easily hit US warships with missiles
A senior official of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said that US warships operating in the Gulf are within the range of the country's missiles.
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Iranian anti-ship missiles fired during a drill in 2013. Photo:AP. |
"Even our short-range missiles can easily hit US warships in the Gulf," Mohammad Saleh Jokar, deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said today. "America cannot bear the cost of a new war and its social and human situation is very bad."
The comments by a senior IRGC official come as tensions between the US and Iran are escalating, with the US aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln deployed to the Arabian Sea south of Iran in a bid to deter the country.
Iran has accused the US of waging psychological warfare and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said this week that Tehran could not negotiate another deal after the US withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.
Rasoul Sanai-Rad, deputy political commander of Iran's armed forces, accused US President Donald Trump of being dishonest when he called for dialogue while "pointing his gun" at Tehran.
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Range of missiles of Iran's armed forces. Click on the image for details. |
Iran’s armed forces, including the IRGC, possess a wide range of powerful ballistic and cruise missiles, some of which have the range to cover the entire Middle East and surrounding waters. However, Trump also declared yesterday that he does not want to start a war with Iran, a move that could help ease bilateral tensions.