Karrar, Iran’s Most Advanced Tank, Unveiled

Date: 12 March 2017 - 20:10

News ID: ۳۷۷۴۷

TEHRAN (Dispatches) — Iran on Sunday unveiled a domestically manufactured tank and launched a mass-production line, with Defense Minister Hussein Dehqan saying the tank has the capability to fire missiles and precisely guide them.
The tank named Karrar (Striker) is equipped with an electro-optical fire control system and laser range-finder and is capable of firing at both stable and mobile targets day or night.
Dehqan also said the tank can compete with the most advanced tanks in the world in the three main areas of "power, precision and mobility.”
Iran has been producing its own weapons and military equipment, including missiles, fighter jets and submarines, for more than two decades.
Dehqan said Karrar, which has been three years in the making, is among the most advanced tanks in the world because of its remarkable features.
Its firepower and precision, mobility, and battleground endurance, he said, are comparable to the most state-of-the art of its kind in the world.
The tank’s missile power has been boosted with ballistics computer, laser-guided targeting, and the potential for both the gunner and military commander to aim the projectiles from two parallel gunsights fitted onto the vehicle.
"Updating armored equipment is one of the most essential strategies applied by the Defense Ministry in the area of ground warfare,” the Iranian defense chief asserted.
Last week, Dehqan said Iran defensive military power would catch enemies off guard in case of an act of aggression against the Islamic Republic.
"The Iranian Defense Ministry invests in sectors that would give us the upper hand. In line with this policy… we have developed a series of defensive systems so that we would not be caught off-guard by the enemy," he said.
Dehqan said the U.S. and the occupying regime of Israel would start a war against Iran if they had the slightest doubts about the Islamic Republic's defensive capabilities.
The minister noted that Iran was focusing on defense projects that would guarantee the country’s victory in case of a confrontation, and that the Islamic Republic was fully capable of identifying and foiling potential threats.
"We have always stood up against threats,” he said, adding that the Iranian nation now feels safe against any threats thanks to the Islamic Republic’s defensive might.
Iran has managed to attain self-sufficiency in manufacturing necessary military equipment in line with its policy to boost defensive capabilities against potential threats.
Tehran maintains that its military power poses no threat to other countries and that its military doctrine is solely based on deterrence.
In his remarks, Dehqan also reaffirmed Tehran’s support for resistance movements, calling it a major deterrent against adversaries.