Iran a ‘trailblazer’ in drone technology whose power extends beyond region: IRGC general

Brigadier General Amir-Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Division, said in a Tuesday ceremony on the anniversary of Iraq’s imposed war on Iran in the 1980s that the Islamic Republic has become more than a regional power.

“Iran is at a world level in the field of drones and has become a trailblazer in the field of techniques and tactics,” Hajizadeh said, stressing that many world countries use Iran’s expertise as a model in manufacturing drones.

“Today, we use drones not only for reconnaissance, surveillance, combat and defense missions, but we can use them for dozens of missions,” the IRGC commander added.

Hajizadeh also pointed to Iraq’s foreign-backed war against Iran in the 1980s and hailed the resistance of the Iranian nation.

“About 30 countries stood up to us to destroy this [Islamic] establishment and disintegrate Iran, but thanks to God’s grace and the nation’s resistance, we not only overcame their war machine, but we did not lose a single square meter of our homeland and imposed our will on them,” he asserted.

Iraq waged the war against Iran more than one and a half years after the victory of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which toppled the US-backed Pahlavi regime. The eight-year Iranian defense set up the foundation for the emergence of Islamic resistance in West Asia.

Iranian military experts and engineers have in recent years made remarkable breakthroughs in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient.

Iranian officials have repeatedly underscored that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense, and that Iran’s defense capabilities will be never subject to negotiations.