Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says his country has test-fired a new advanced missile that reportedly can reach Israel, southeastern Europe and U.S. bases in the Middle East.
State media quoted Mr. Ahmadinejad as saying Wednesday while in Semnan that Iran’s military successfully launched the Sejil-2 missile with a range of some 2,000 kilometers.
He says the missile hit its target.
The solid-fuel surface-to-surface missile is a new version of the Sejil that Iran said it had successfully tested in November.
The United States condemned the earlier test as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Mr. Ahmadinejad has inflamed tensions with the West in the past and has threatened to wipe Israel “off the map.” Israel has not ruled out military action on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
The United States and its Western allies accuse Iran of working to produce a nuclear weapon. U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday he hopes to see serious progress by the end of year in diplomatic initiatives to get Iran to stop its uranium enrichment activities.
Iran says its atomic program is for producing electricity.
