The Islamic Republic of Iran has announced the successful development of an indigenous air defence system.
"This hi-tech system is able to target airplanes and other aggressive aircrafts at an altitude of 55,000 feet (about 18 kilometers)," Iranian Defence Minister Brigadier General Mostafa Mohammad Najjar told the government-controlled FARS News agency. "We have used hi-tech technology in the system, including detection radars and target interceptors which are all made by our country's experts."
 Najjar explained the system was designed to intercept hostile fighters, helicopters and cruise missiles. The brigadier general also noted that the fuse-equipped shells were capable of detonating and destroying designated targets at a close distance.
"One of the most important features of this weapon is its smart system which can track down the target and fire at it automatically. In addition to these radars, the new air defence system has a central unit for flak control and central unit for information coordination which are designed and made by defense ministry specialists," added the minister.
Iran has produced at least two indigenously designed surface-to-air missiles: the Hawk-based Sayyad-1, capable of achieving a 40-50 kilometre firing range and the truck-mounted Shahab Thaqeb, which closely resembles the Chinese HQ-7/FM-80/90.
As The News previously reported, Tehran frequently promotes its indigenous weapons production programme in an effort to bolster the country's deterrence capabilities. For example, Iran recently announced that its missile industry was entirely self-sufficient and no longer required the assistance of "foreign" suppliers.
However, according to GlobalSecurity, the Islamic state remains reliant on limited North Korean capacity for its ballistic missile arsenal.
"North Korea's perilous economic condition and the consequent possibility that it would have to moderate its 'rogue state' character in order to survive, could leave Iran without an adequate and reliable supplier of missiles in a war," said the organisation's website.
Steven A. Hildreth, a specialist in missile defense and non-proliferation, expressed similiar sentiments.
"There is little disagreement among most experts that Iran has acquired some number of ballistic missiles from other countries and has developed other ballistic missiles indigenously or in cooperation with others."
A Pentagon spokesperson recently confirmed that Iran was "not testing new technologies or capabilities, but rather firing off old equipment in an attempt to intimidate their neighbours and escalate tension in the region".
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