Iran kicks off air defense drills amid tensions with Israel, Azerbaijan
The exercise comes as Israeli officials are reportedly seeking assurances that the Biden administration is ready for joint operations should nuclear negotiations in Vienna fail.
Iran’s Army and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps kicked off an annual air defense exercise in the country’s central desert on Tuesday to demonstrate Tehran’s ability to defend “sensitive” sites, an Iranian commander said.
The two-day exercise includes Iran’s Khordad air defense systems as well as unmanned drones, missiles, radars and electronic and cyber warfare systems, according to Iranian state news.
The commander of the Iranian Army’s air defense corps, Brigadier General Alireza Sabahifard, told state television that the drills were successful, and that all weapons used were indigenously manufactured and “on the cutting edge of modern technology," according to Al-Jazeera.
Elements from the IRGC’s aerospace division and Iranian Air Force partook in the drills, which were based in the country’s air defense headquarters at Khatam ul-Anbia.
