Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Wallace of Saltaire (Liberal Democrat). It was answered by Lord Triesman (Labour) on Wednesday, 28 February 2007.

Iran: Missile Threat

Question: What assessment they have made of the potential missile threat to the United Kingdom from Iran.

Answer: My Lords, Iran’s longest range in-service missile is believed to be the Shahab 3, which entered into service in 2003. It has a claimed range of 1,300 kilometres with a 700 kilogramme payload. That range will not enable missiles to reach the United Kingdom mainland but it would be sufficient to enable them to reach Israel, Turkey and Cyprus, as well as large parts of Saudi Arabia. The missile has been tested to slightly longer distances with a smaller payload. Iran has ambitions to develop longer-range missile systems.

Secondary information