Analysis. An Iranian diplomatic source still welcomed this at the end of January: "By targeting the Americans with our missiles and mastering the moderate impact of the attack, we have shown the United States that they can be hit precisely where they can feel most protected. " In the official account that the Islamic Republic is already weaving from the escalation which followed the assassination by an American drone of General Ghassem Soleimani in Baghdad, these are as much the means – the ballistic instrument – as the objective – the military installations soldiers from the base of Ain Al-Assad, Iraq, struck on January 7 – which are highlighted.
The Iranian attack was indeed made possible by the priority given for decades by Tehran to the development of an arsenal of Iranian-made missiles, which has become, since the 1979 revolution, the real pillar of the military strategy of the Islamic Republic. . Iranian missiles are now an essential component of the region’s security equation as tensions between Iran and the United States continue to pose the threat of further escalation. The main concern is from the Arabian shore of the Persian Gulf to Tel Aviv, the constant improvement of Iranian capabilities in this area and the spread of the missiles thanks to regional allies in Tehran.
The Islamic Republic has the largest ballistic and cruise missile force in the Middle East. The range of some of the vectors that compose it could exceed 2,000 kilometers, the distance between Iran’s western borders and Greece. The interest shown, from its origins and the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988), by the Islamic Republic in these weapons is linked to the air superiority enjoyed by its adversaries, Saddam Hussein's Iraq first, then the 'Saudi Arabia and Israel. Struck by sanctions which prevent it from having recourse to the international markets to reinforce its military capacities, the Islamic Republic knew how to bet effectively on the missiles to constitute an aviation substitute of which it controls the production and which allows it to project its power beyond its borders.
Arsenal entrusted to the guardians of the revolution
Considered an existential need of the regime, the construction of an arsenal of missiles is entrusted to the guards of the revolution, the ideological army of the Islamic Republic. It is up to them to oversee its development and maintenance while the aging Iranian air force remains in the hands of the regular army. After purchasing Soviet missiles from Libya, North Korean versions from Syria from the mid-1980s and then entire production lines, Iran created its own ballistic industry by copying and enhancing projectiles originally designed by the USSR as well as by turning to Chinese technologies. The result is a fleet of missiles of various ranges, more and more precise and efficient. As its capabilities increase, Iran begins to use it for demonstration.
