TEHRAN -- Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard said it successfully test-fired short-range missiles Sunday in drills meant to show Tehran is prepared to crush any military threat from another country.Gen. Hossein Salami, head of the Revolutionary Guard Air Force, said Iran had perfected its short range missiles to make them more accurate in tactical battlefield situations and defend the country from any attacks. "We are going to respond to any military action in a crushing manner and it doesn't make any difference which country or regime has launched the aggression," state media quoted Salami as saying. He said the missiles successfully hit their targets.
The missiles tested weren't the kind that can carry a nuclear warhead. Iran is developing such ballistic missiles, but the U.S. believes that effort has been slowed.
Tehran carried out the missile tests now "to show some muscle, show some strength, and say the game is not over for Iran yet," said Alex Vatanka, a senior middle east analyst at IHS Jane's. He noted that Iran will be meeting with the Western powers in Geneva next week. "They felt going into these meetings next week that they needed to have something else to bolster their position, and I think that Iran's Revolutionary Guard showing a bit of military muscle here is part of that," he said.