Iran tests Shahab missile ahead of talks with powers

IRAN: Iran test-fired a missile on Monday which defence analysts have said could hit Israel and U.S. bases in the Gulf, state media reported, a move that may irk world powers ahead of rare talks with Tehran this week.

The Revolutionary Guards launched the Shahab 3 missile during war games coinciding with increased tension in Iran’s nuclear row with the West, after last week’s disclosure by the Islamic state it is building a second uranium enrichment plant.

News of the nuclear fuel facility south of Tehran added a sense of urgency to a meeting in Geneva on Thursday between Iranian officials and representatives of six major powers, including the United States, China and Russia.

The United States and its Western allies have made clear they will focus on Iran’s nuclear programme at the meeting. Iran has offered wide-ranging security talks but says it will not discuss its nuclear “rights”.

Washington, which suspects Iran is seeking to build nuclear bombs, has previously expressed concern about Tehran’s missile programme. Iran, a major oil producer, says its nuclear work is solely for peaceful power generation purposes.

Iran’s English language Press TV said the Shahab 3, a surface-to-surface missile, was “successfully” test-fired on the second day of an exercise that got under way on Sunday, when short and medium-range missiles were launched. “All targets within the region, no matter where they are, will be within the range of these missiles,” General Hossein Salami, commander of the Guards’ air force, said according to Guards website.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said there was no link between the missile manoeuvres and the country’s nuclear activities. “This is a military drill which is deterrent in nature,” spokesman Hassan Qashqavi told a news conference broadcast by Press TV.

“There is no connection whatsoever with the nuclear programme.”

Tehran, onday, Reuters