WORLD> Middle East
Defiant Iran tests longest-range missiles
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-09-29 06:15

Allison Puccioni, a senior imagery analyst with Jane's, said Monday she could not reconcile the discrepancy between the location detailed in the satellite images and the site described by Iran's foreign ministry. But she said there was no question a massive facility was being hollowed out north of Qom.

"It's undergoing massive construction as we speak. The level of reinforcement and security is highly consistent with a strategic facility," she said in a telephone interview from Mountainview, Calif.

Iran said Saturday it would allow UN nuclear inspectors to examine the site.

The facility's military connection could undermine Iran's contention that the plant was designed for civilian purposes.

Israel has trumpeted the latest discoveries as proof of its long-held assertion that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons. By US estimates, Iran is one to five years away from having nuclear weapons capability, although US intelligence also believes that Iranian leaders have not yet made the decision to build a weapon.

Iran is also developing ballistic missiles that could carry a nuclear warhead, although a US intelligence assessment in May says the country is focusing efforts on short- and medium-range missiles like the Shahab.

That assessment paved the way for Obama's decision to shelve the Bush administration's plan for a missile shield in Europe, which was aimed at defending against Iranian intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Iran is not expected to have such a missile until 2015 to 2020, according to the report, which was described by a US government official on condition of anonymity because it is classified.

The Sajjil-2 missile is Iran's most advanced two-stage surface-to-surface missile and is powered entirely by solid-fuel, while the older Shahab-3 uses a combination of solid and liquid fuel in its most advanced form, known as the Qadr-F1.

Solid fuel increases a missile's accuracy in reaching targets and is seen as a technological breakthrough for any missile program.

Experts say the Sajjil-2 is more accurate and has a more advanced navigation system than the Shahab.

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