Iran’s land-to-sea missiles can travel 700 kilometers: Senior IRGC cmdr.

A senior Iranian military commander says the country has successfully extended the range of its land-to-sea ballistic missiles to 700 kilometers.

“Today, we have succeeded to produce surface-to-sea ballistic missiles, which enable us to target warships and vessels [deployed] 700 kilometers (434 miles) away,” Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Aerospace Division, said Tuesday.

Those improvements were made on the instruction of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who also serves as Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Armed Forces.

‘Iran plans to boost ballistic, cruise missile power’

A senior Iran’s Defense Ministry official says Tehran plans to boost the capabilities of its ballistic and cruise missiles.

“The missiles we produce, [with ranges] from 200 kilometers to 2,000, are all surgical,” said the senior commander, adding the missiles “produced in the past are also being enhanced into surgical projectiles.”

Over the past years, Iran has made major breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in manufacturing military equipment and hardware despite sanctions and economic pressures on the country.

Tehran asserts that its missile arsenal is strictly in the service of the country’s defensive purposes and poses no threat to other states.