The UK, France and Germany have condemned Iran’s missile advances about a week after the unveiling of the Fattah-2, a ballistic missile that Tehran claims is “hypersonic.”
In a joint statement, the so-called E3 Iran continues to develop its missile program despite repeated international calls to halt it, and after years of disregarding UN restrictions.
Iran unveiled the new ballistic missile variant on November 19. Fattah II is reportedly equipped with an advanced warhead and hypersonic glide vehicle capable of maneuvering at high speeds to evade air defense systems. The missile was put on display at Ashura Aerospace Science and Technology University, a division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Tehran. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei visited the site to review an exhibition of new weapons systems, among them the Fattah II.
Highlighting the “grave threat Iran poses to global and regional security,” the countries decried Iran’s continued development of its ballistic missile program that “follows continued nuclear escalation, beyond all credible civilian justification, and previously conducted research on nuclear weapons delivery.”
The expiration of UN sanctions on Iran’s missile program in October has raised concerns about the accelerated proliferation of potentially dangerous weapons. Iran is now free to sell its drones, ballistic missiles, and related long-range strike technologies to its anti-Western partners and clients and can also procure technology for further development.
The lifting of sanctions provides Iran with the opportunity to generate revenue from missile sales, potentially using the profits to finance militant and terror proxies in the Middle East.