Rouhani Vows Support for Armed Forces’ Arms Program

“I clearly say that the government, the society’s elites, our industrialists and knowledge-based companies will stand beside the Armed Forces with all their power to supply those equipment and weapons for the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) that they need,” President Rouhani said in Tehran on Wednesday, addressing the annual parades marking the Army Day in Iran.

“We tell the world that we often produce any weapon that we need or we procure it if needed and we have not and will not wait for their (the powers’) words, agreement or positive view,” he underlined.

Yet, Rouhani also addressed Iran’s neighbors, stressing the country’s policy of good neighborliness.

“We are not after making aggression against you (the neighbors),” he underlined.

Rouhani, meantime, cautioned the US and its western allies to stop filling the region with “gunpowder” and weapons for their interests.

He described the only way to establish peace in the region and the world as political talks and peaceful behavior, and said, “We will continue our military might and power along with détente and we know that our Armed Forces are prepared to defend the country and its independence, honor and prestige under any conditions.”

The annual parades marking the Army Day officially started in Tehran and other cities on Wednesday morning.

Various units of the Islamic Republic Army participated in the nationwide parades.

In Tehran, the ceremony took place at the mausoleum of the Founder of the Islamic Republic, the Late Imam Khomeini, South of the capital.

Different units of Iran’s Army forces marched in uniform before top commanders in a show of military might and defensive power.

The ceremony was participated by President Hassan Rouhani, Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri and other senior military and government officials as well as foreign diplomats, military attaches and reporters.

Foreign delegates as well as military and civilian officials were also present in the ceremony. Ranking commanders of the Armed Forces also took part in the ceremony.

The latest military and defense achievements made by Iranian experts went on display, including Aftabaz passive (phased array) radar system, rapid-reaction command and control combat system and Kamin 2 and Seraj 1 missile systems.

Iranian Army Airborne Commander General Yousef Qorbani announced on Monday the country’s plan to unveil a new short-range missile named ‘Shafaq’ during the military parades on the Army Day in Iran on April 18, adding that the missile is an upgrade of an earlier version with a longer range.

“The range of the missile has doubled to fly 8 to 12km farther compared with the previous version and given the regional threats that we are facing, they can be highly effective in combats in short-range combat zones,” General Qorbani said.

The Iranian Armed Forces have recently test-fired different types of newly-developed missiles and torpedoes and tested a large number of home-made weapons, tools and equipment, including submarines, military ships, artillery, choppers, aircrafts, UAVs and air defense and electronic systems, during massive military drills.

Defense analysts and military observers say that Iran’s wargames and its advancements in weapons production have proved as a deterrent factor.