The Aerospace Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has unveiled two missile and drone tunnel bases built at the heart of high mountains.
On Saturday, the IRGC Chief Commander Major General Hossein Salami unveiled the bases, which house ground-to-ground missile systems with advanced equipment, as well as attack drones that can penetrate the enemy’s radar and defense networks.
The bases are also home to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with a range of 2,000 kilometers, two-missile launch platforms and multi-drone launch platforms, which were unveiled during the IRGC’s Great Prophet 17 joint military exercises in Iran’s southern shore in December 2021.
During General Salami's visit to the bases, Brigadier Genearal Amir-Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Force, presented a report on the new measures taken by the elite military force and its achievements.
He said Iran can now simultaneously launch 60 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) from its newly unveiled underground base with no target limitation, because the “range of the unmanned aircraft is long and not limited”.
“We can hit any hostile target,” Hajizadeh said.
“What the Islamic Republic has relied upon is not arms, but faith, determination and persistence. Nevertheless, Iran, by God’s grace, is in possession of sufficient amount of efficient weapons developed with homegrown technologies,” he added.
The IRGC Aerospace Force, he also said, has boosted the firepower of Iranian missiles six- to seven-fold and largely reduced the preparation time for their launch.
The force, he added, has pursued serious plans to exponentially enhance the capabilities of its forces upon a decree by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.
The enemy has been admitting the rise in the IRGC’s drone power, Hajizadeh said.
Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that the Islamic Republic will not hesitate to build up its defense capabilities, emphasizing that such abilities are entirely meant for the purpose of defense and will never be subject to negotiations.
In recent years, the country has made great progress in indigenously developing and manufacturing a broad range of defense equipment.
On Saturday, Iranian lawmakers required that the administration dedicate 4.5 billion euros of the oil income for strategic defense research and expansion of the country’s defense capabilities.
In an open session of the parliament, the lawmakers mapped out plans for the annual income in the next Iranian year’s national budget.