Armed forces of the world

Iran's military system is unique: it coexists the Army, preserved from the times of the Shah, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), created after the 1979 revolution, and both the Army and the IRGC have their own ground forces, air force and navy. The IRGC performs the functions of a “second army” and, at the same time, internal troops of the Islamic regime. The coexistence of the Wehrmacht and SS troops in Nazi Germany can be considered a certain analogue of such a system. In fact, part of the IRGC is the Basij people's militia, with a potential number (after mobilization) of several million people. In addition, the IRGC includes a structure that performs strategic reconnaissance and sabotage functions - the Qods special forces. Both the Army and the IRGC are subordinate to the spiritual leader of Iran (now Ayatollah Khamenei), and president-elect- only one of 11 members of the Supreme Council national security.

The central governing body of the Armed Forces is the General Staff. There is a Main Political-Ideological Directorate and the same departments of the Armed Forces. There is an apparatus of Islamic observers, without whose sanction no decisions of commanders are valid (that is, this is a complete analogue of the Bolshevik commissars in the Red Army during the Civil War).

Currently, the Iranian Armed Forces are among the most eclectic in the world in terms of military equipment. They have weapons: American, English and French, surviving from the times of the Shah; Chinese and North Korean, supplied during the 1980-1988 war with Iraq and after it; Soviet and Russian, re-exported from Syria, Libya and North Korea during the war or purchased from the USSR and Russia after its end; own, copied from foreign samples. Most of the weapons and equipment are outdated, and with regard to Western models, there is also the problem of lack of spare parts. The most new physically is the technology of our own production. Iran largely follows the Chinese practice of copying almost any foreign design it has. However, the scientific, technical and production capabilities of the Iranian military-industrial complex are much lower than those of the Chinese military-industrial complex, so most of the domestic equipment is of very low quality, which is why it enters the armed forces in small quantities. Of course, international sanctions have a negative effect on the Iranian Armed Forces, because of which it can conduct legal military cooperation only with the DPRK, which is also under sanctions.

During the war with Iraq, Iranian armed forces personnel, as a rule, demonstrated a very low level of combat training (which was partly compensated by high fanaticism). There are serious doubts that over the past quarter of a century, radical changes for the better have taken place in this regard.

Since the losses of the Iranian Armed Forces during the war with Iraq and, on the other hand, the trophies captured during this war, the current technical condition of military equipment and the production capabilities of the military-industrial complex are not known exactly, the number of weapons of the Iranian Armed Forces is estimated very approximately (this is how one should treat the given below figures). Also, data on the organizational structure of the Iranian Armed Forces, especially the ground forces, are not completely reliable.

Below is the total number of weapons and equipment for the Army and the IRGC. Affiliation with the IRGC is specifically stated in cases where it is reliably known.

Ground troops The armies are divided into 4 territorial commands, each of which includes one army corps: Northern (2nd AK), Western (1st AK), Southwestern (3rd AK), Eastern (4th AK). Most of the units are deployed in the west of the country. It is not possible to give the exact composition of the commands (AC) due to the regular rotation of units and formations between them.

In total, the Army's ground forces have 4 armor tank divisions(16th, 81st, 88th, 92nd), 3 mechanized divisions (28th, 77th, 84th), 3 infantry divisions (21st, 30th, 64th ), 3 armored brigades (37th, 38th, 71st), 2 infantry brigades (40th, 41st), 6 artillery brigades (11th, 22nd, 23rd, 33rd I, 44th, 55th). There are also powerful mobile and special forces- 23rd Airborne and 58th Airborne Divisions, 55th and 65th Airborne Brigades, 25th, 44th and 66th Airborne Brigades, 35th and 45th I am a commando brigade.

The ground forces of the IRGC have 26 infantry, 2 mechanized, 2 tank divisions, 16 infantry, 6 armored, 2 mechanized, 1 RCBZ, 1 psychological warfare brigade, 10 groups (missile, RCBZ, communications, air defense, engineering, 5 artillery).

The Tondar tactical missiles are in service (from 20 to 30 launchers and 100-200 missiles, firing range up to 150 km). They are copied from the Chinese M-7 missiles, which, in turn, are based on the HQ-2 anti-aircraft missiles (a Chinese copy of the Soviet S-75 air defense system). There are also approximately 250 Luna, Ohab and Shahin-2 tactical missiles, up to 500 Nazit and Iran-130.

Iran's tank fleet is extremely diverse. The most modern are 570 Soviet T-72s. There are also many old tanks - from 100 to 200 English “Chieftains” and up to 400 “Mobarez” (“Chieftains”, modernized in Iran itself), up to 300 Soviet T-62s and North Korean “Chonma-ho” created on their basis, up to 190 Safir tanks modernized in Iran (Soviet T-54/55 with a 105-mm M60 tank gun) and up to 100 T-54/55 themselves, up to 100 Chinese Tour 59, up to 250 Tour 69 and up to 500 T-72Z (Ture 59/69 with 105 mm cannon), up to 150 American М60А1, from 40 to 100 М48, from 75 to 150 local "Zulfikar-1" and 5 "Zulfikar-3" (М48/60 with T-72 turret) , from 50 to 170 M47 and "Sabalan" (local modernization of the M47 with a 105 mm cannon). In addition, from 80 to 130 are in service English lungs Scorpion tanks and 20 Tosan tanks created on their basis.

The ground forces are armed with 35 Brazilian EE-9 armored personnel carriers, approximately 1,200 infantry fighting vehicles (up to 600 infantry fighting vehicles (BMP-1s) and up to 190 of their local analogs "Borag", 413 infantry fighting vehicles (BMP-2s), up to 850 armored personnel carriers (up to 200 American M113A1, up to 150 Soviet armored personnel carriers) -50, up to 45 BTR-152 and up to 300 BTR-60, approximately 50 domestic "Raksh" and up to 140 VMT-2 "Cobra" (wheeled with a BMP-2 turret)).

Self-propelled artillery includes up to 60 Soviet self-propelled guns 2S1 and their local analogues "Raad-1" (122 mm), approximately 180 American M109 and their local analogues "Raad-2", several wheeled self-propelled guns - howitzers NM-41 on trucks (155 mm), 18 -20 North Korean M-1978 (170 mm), from 25 to 40 American M107 (175 mm) and from 30 to 38 M110 (203 mm). There are numerous towed guns - up to 200 American M101A1 (105 mm), from 100 to 500 Soviet D-30 and their local copies NM-40, up to 100 Chinese Toure 60 (122 mm), at least 800 Soviet M-46 and similar Chinese Ture 59 (130 mm), up to 30 Soviet D-20 (152 mm), approximately 120 Austrian GHN-45, up to 100 American M114 and their local copies NM-41, 15 Chinese Type 88 (aka WAC-21), up to 30 South African G-5 (155 mm), from 20 to 50 American M115 (203 mm). The number of mortars reaches 5 thousand.

The national and religious specifics of the country are reflected in different areas life in Iran. Including in the creation of the armed forces. The armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) are the largest in number in the Near and Middle East. They have combat experience gained during the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988). Their creation is based on the military-political goals of the Islamic leadership of Iran, as well as economic opportunities, national and religious specifics of the country.

Structure of the armed forces.

A peculiarity of the organizational structure of the Iranian armed forces is the presence in their composition of two independent components: regular armed formations - the Army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Each of these components has its own ground forces, air force and naval forces (Air Force and Navy) with a corresponding system of command and control bodies both in peacetime and in war time.

The IRGC also includes a structure that performs strategic reconnaissance and sabotage functions - the Qods Special Forces (SSN).
It seems legitimate to include in the Iranian armed forces the Law Enforcement Forces (LOF), which in peacetime are subordinate to the Minister of Internal Affairs, and in wartime - to the General Staff of the Armed Forces.

In addition, the military doctrine provides for the creation of the “Islamic Army of 20 Million”, a kind of people’s militia under the auspices of the Ksirov structure - the Basij Resistance Forces (BRF) or for short - “Basij” (Basij - mobilization - in Farsi).

Who is who

In accordance with Art. 110 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Supreme Commander of all armed forces of the country is the Spiritual Leader of the Nation, who has practically unlimited powers in all military and military-political matters.

The spiritual leader has the authority to declare war, peace and general mobilization. He appoints, removes and accepts the resignation of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, the commanders-in-chief of the IRGC, the Army, the commanders of the branches of these components of the Armed Forces, and the commander of the Special Operations Command.

Subordinate to the spiritual leader is the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), the most important advisory body on issues of state security, defense, strategic planning and coordination of government activities in various fields. The tasks of the National Security Council include the development of defense policy and policy to ensure state security within the framework of the general line determined by the spiritual leader of Iran. In addition, this body coordinates military, political, economic, social, information and cultural activities in the country with the interests of ensuring the security of the state.

The Supreme Commander-in-Chief directs the armed forces of Iran through the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, which exercises administrative and operational control of the Armed Forces in peacetime and war through the joint headquarters of the Army and the IRGC, the headquarters of the armed forces, the headquarters of the Special Operations Command and the corresponding territorial bodies, which in each of the structures have their own name, purpose, composition, functions and tasks.
The General Staff is the highest, central governing body of all components and types of the country's Armed Forces.

The Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Support is not directly related to the combat activities of the troops. It is responsible for the following issues: military construction, development of the military budget, control over current financing, military R&D, the functioning of the Defense Industry Organization, planned purchases of weapons and military equipment (including abroad) for all types of Iranian armed forces.

The number of Iran's total regular armed forces, according to various sources, ranges from 540 to 900 thousand people, of which from 450 to 670 thousand are in ground forces(army and IRGC), almost 70 to 100 thousand in the Air Force, from 35 to 45 thousand in the Navy, as well as about 135 thousand in the SSF and more than 15 thousand in the Qods Force. The scattering of data is explained by the almost absolute secrecy of the topic relating to the armed forces in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Various non-Iranian sources provide ambiguous information about the size and combat strength of the Iranian Armed Forces, as well as the number of weapons and military equipment.

In general (according to various estimates), the Iranian Armed Forces have from 150 to 300 launchers of tactical, operational-tactical and anti-ship missiles; from 1.5 to 3 thousand tanks; from 1.8 to 3.2 thousand field artillery guns; from 250 to 900 reactive systems volley fire; from 260 to 306 combat aircraft; from 300 to 375 attack helicopters; about 200 launchers of anti-aircraft guided missiles; 1.5 thousand anti-aircraft artillery guns; 26 surface combatants, 3 submarines, 170 combat boats (missile, torpedo and artillery), more than 200 anti-ship missiles on ships and boats.

Combat training

As for personnel, the Iranian military leadership in last years is taking steps to improve the combat training of soldiers and officers. Military observers note that the Iranian command has placed emphasis in combat training on working out issues of interaction between various units, units, branches of the armed forces and branches of the Armed Forces, as well as the Basij Resistance Forces and Law Enforcement Forces. Moreover, one of the leading places in combat training is occupied by practicing the actions of personnel in conditions guerrilla warfare during the occupation of the country's territory by an enemy possessing high-tech weapons. As before, the most important component of combat training of troops is moral, psychological and ideological (religious) training, which to a certain extent should compensate for the shortcomings of military training.

An important point is that at the beginning of its more than 30-year history, the IRGC was an irregular armed militia group with a control system independent of the army. However, already in the first months of the Iran-Iraq war, the great potential political, military and security capabilities of the IRGC were revealed, and ways were outlined to transform the corps into the main force in the system of regular armed formations of Iran. Today, the IRGC has become a powerful multifunctional structure of the Iranian state, surpassing the Army in some aspects. Throughout the post-war years, there was a process of gradual merging of the two components of the Iranian Armed Forces. A single Ministry of Defense and Support of the Armed Forces and a single General Staff were created for the Army and the IRGC. But they still retain their independence.

After Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a graduate of the IRGC, came to the presidency, information began to appear that the country’s top leadership had made or was planning to make a decision to merge the two components of the Iranian Armed Forces into a single structure, and under the leadership of the IRGC.

Military equipment

With weapons and military equipment, the situation is more complicated. The vast majority of Iranian weapons were produced in the 60s and 70s. last century. There are even “museum exhibits” from the 40s and 50s, in particular some ships and artillery systems. Combat aviation is represented by obsolete American F-4, F-5 aircraft, French F-1 Mirages, Chinese F-7, as well as Soviet planes Su-24 and Su-25. Relatively new models can be considered the Russian MiG-29 and, to some extent, the American F-14. However, Military Balance estimates that only 60% of American-made aircraft and 80% of Russian- and Chinese-made aircraft are in operational-ready condition.

Armament and Combat vehicles, produced by the Iranian military-industrial complex, although “physically” new, in their design features they are either licensed or a copy of outdated foreign models. As a rule, military equipment that comes off the assembly line at Iranian military-industrial complex enterprises does not belong to the category of high technology. The most modern type of weapons seems to be missile weapons produced in Iran itself.

Iran's missile program: friends and foes

Iranian missiles today are the main striking force of the Iranian armed forces, which is capable of responding to possible military decisions of the United States and Israel regarding the Iranian nuclear program.

According to Dan Ashkelonsky, an expert on the armed forces of the countries of the Near and Middle East, Iran views missile weapons as the most important component of its program to create unconventional weapons, which will actually allow it to pose a threat to its existing and potential opponents, and spends a significant part of its military budget on its development. Thus, already in the mid-1990s, when the country was just recovering from the shocks caused by the eight-year war with Iraq, Iran significantly exceeded many states of the Near and Middle East in the number of operational-tactical missiles.

However, Iran encountered significant difficulties along this path. Iran had neither research traditions, nor a national scientific school, nor many years of experience, which is necessary to create a high-tech foundation. But it is on its basis that it is possible to develop the most complex types of the latest weapons and military equipment, comparable to Russian, American or Western European ones. Therefore, the main method of functioning of the Iranian defense industry consists to a large extent in the reproduction of foreign weapons.

Based on the general situation in Iranian research and development (R&D), Tehran gives priority to cloning, sometimes modernizing and customizing North Korean, Pakistani, Chinese, Russian and American products to Iranian needs. It is not for nothing that Russian and foreign experts in weapons and military equipment find foreign analogues in almost every new model of Iranian weapons demonstrated at military exercises. Iran obtains “primary sources” through various procurement schemes, as well as through intelligence. Great importance have bilateral military-technical ties, in particular with North Korea.

Despite objective difficulties, the political leadership of Iran managed to create a military-scientific infrastructure in the country. Modern Iran has a large number of research and development institutions and centers where new types of combat and auxiliary equipment are being developed. In general, Iran’s military-industrial complex, including its rocket-building component, is considered one of the largest and most developed in the Near and Middle East, although it is inferior in its capabilities to the defense industry of Israel, Turkey and, partly, Pakistan.

Control structure

Most military industries are run by the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Support (MDS), but the most important programs—missiles, other types of weapons of mass destruction, and tank production—are under the control of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The main coordinating body of the Iranian defense industry is the Commission for Scientific and Technical Research under the President of Iran, which develops proposals for the development of military production coordinated with interested departments. The largest structure of the defense industry is the Organization of the Defense Industry, subordinate to the Ministry of Defense and Defense and consisting of a number of industrial groups and companies specializing in the production of specific types of military products. Development and production of various types missile weapons is engaged in the Aerospace Industry Organization. It includes enterprises for the production of anti-tank weapons, air defense systems, naval missiles, tactical (TR) and operational-tactical missiles (OTR), space systems, telemetry and radar equipment.

An important point indicating the special role of the IRGC in the system of military industry and the armed forces of Iran is the fact that missile production and the main striking force of Iran - the missile forces - have long been part of this corps. However, now the status of these troops is even more elevated. Now the missile forces report directly to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief (SHC), that is, the Spiritual Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

One of the activities of the Iranian missile industry is the development and production of tactical (TR) and operational-tactical missiles (OTR), as well as medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs). To date, TR and OTR WS-1 (firing range up to 80 km), Nazeat of various modifications (range up to 150 km), CSS-8 (range up to 180 km), Zelzal, as well as other types have been created and are being produced operational-tactical missiles with a firing range of up to 300 km. And just recently, on September 21, 2010, it was reported that the IRGC had received the first batch of the new generation Fateh-110 surface-to-surface missiles. These solid rockets are equipped with new system guidance and are designed to destroy ground targets. The maximum missile range is 195 km. Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi said that an improved version of the Fateh-110 missiles is already being developed.

Tactical and operational-tactical missiles created in Iran cannot be used as carriers of nuclear weapons, but are capable of hitting naval targets in the Persian and Oman Gulfs, which in a crisis situation could jeopardize the transportation of oil from this region.

Priorities of Iranian rocket production

The main direction of Iranian rocket production is currently research and development work under the Shahab program, which was analyzed in most detail in the work of American analyst Anthony Cordesman.

The R-14E guided missile developed in the USSR (according to NATO classification - SCUD-B) and its modernized analogues (primarily North Korean) in a number of countries still serve as the basis for technological developments in the field of ballistic missile construction. It should be noted that the Soviet SCUD and its North Korean “daughters” and “granddaughters” became a springboard for the development of Iranian missile technology and rocket science in general. Moreover, the SCUD missile and its modifications found wide use by Iran already in the last years of the Iran-Iraq war (1980 -1988).

According to available data, in 2006 Iran had in its arsenal from 300 to 750 Shahab-1 (SCUD-B variant) and Shahab-2 (SCUD-C variant) units.

"Shahab-3" is new stage in the development of Iranian rocket technology, since its rocket is more powerful than previous versions of the Shahab. The Shahab-3 design is based on the North Korean No Dong-1/A and No Dong-1/B missiles. Some analysts believe that North Korean missiles were developed and upgraded with Iranian financial support.

Iran began testing the Shehab-3 missile, which was complicated by the imperfection of its own guidance system, in 1998 in parallel with the development of the Shehab-4 missile. The first successful launch of Shehab-3, which was equipped with a new North Korean engine, took place in July 2000. And in the summer of 2001, Tehran announced the start of production of missiles of this type. True, in reality, the Iranians were able to launch production of Shehab-3 only at the end of 2003 with the active help of Chinese companies such as Tai'an Foreign Trade General Corporation and China North Industries Corporation. However, already on September 22, 2003, Shehab-3 missiles mounted on mobile launchers were shown at a military parade in Tehran.

By August 2004, Iranian specialists were able to reduce the size of the head part of the Shehab-3 missile and modernize its propulsion system. It is assumed that this version of the missile has a flight range of about 2 thousand km with a 700-kilogram warhead.

In addition, there is a solid-fuel version of the Shehab-3D (IRIS) missile. According to some experts, it is on its basis that a launch vehicle for launch into orbit is being developed space satellites and it is planned to create Shehab-5 and Shehab-6 missiles with a firing range of 3 thousand km and 5–6 thousand km, respectively (the development program for Shehab-4 missiles with a range of 2.2–3 thousand km was terminated or suspended in October 2003 for political reasons).

Tests and launches

In September 2006, there was an unconfirmed report that Iran possesses more than 30 Shehab-3 missiles and 10 mobile launchers designed for them. And on November 23, the Iranians launched Shehab-3 missiles during a major military exercise. Presumably, this was the Shehab-3 version with a flight range of 1.9 thousand km, equipped, according to information released in Iran, with cluster bombs. By 2008, Iranian designers were able to increase the weight of the warhead of the Shehab-3 class missiles to 1.3 tons with a firing range of about 2 thousand km.

In 2008, the world media announced two suborbital flight tests of Iranian missiles. On February 4, the Kaveshgar-1 (Researcher-1) rocket was tested. On November 26, media reports appeared that Iran had launched the Kaveshgar-2 (Researcher-2) rocket into space. Both missiles, according to media reports, reached an altitude of 200-250 km above the Earth's surface, and after 40 minutes. their head parts descended to Earth using parachutes. However, some experts believe that the Iranians still managed to launch mock-ups of satellites (that is, products without special equipment, but transmitting radio signals) into low-Earth orbits. According to some reports, these missiles were presumably the modernized Shahab-3S (with the index S, quite acceptable - satellite), although, of course, it is not excluded that Shahab-4 was also “involved” here. But most likely, Shahab-3S was precisely the rocket that made suborbital flights on February 4 and November 26, 2008 under the names Kaveshgar-1 and Kaveshgar-2.

On February 3, 2009, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, Iranian specialists had already launched into orbit the first satellite of their own production, Omid (Hope), using the Iranian launch vehicle Safir (Messenger). First national spacecraft was launched into low Earth orbit with a perigee of 250 km, an apogee of about 450 ka, and was safely removed from it on April 25, 2009. The satellite's mass was 27 kg.

On February 3, 2010, Iran launched the Kaveshgar-3 rocket with an experimental capsule containing living creatures: a mouse, a turtle and worms. Moreover, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that in 2017 the Islamic Republic plans to send its first astronaut into orbit. Earlier, the head of the Iranian space agency, Reza Takipur, stated that the launch of the first Iranian astronaut is planned before 2021.

About the degree of reliability

Thus, Iran currently has missiles with a flight range of up to 2 – 2.3 thousand km and a real potential to create launch vehicles capable of covering distances of up to 6 thousand km. However, questions arise here next plan. Firstly, about the reliability of existing missiles. As Soviet and Russian experience shows, before a missile is accepted into service, it goes through a long journey of testing under various conditions. The test cycle lasts for years and includes up to 10-15 flight tests per year. As we can see from the above data, Iranian missiles of various modifications have not been subjected to such tests. This indicates that the reliability of the missiles available to Iran cannot meet the necessary requirements, which, of course, can affect their combat use and lead to undesirable consequences.

The second question is about the reality of the declared missile firing range. Many versions of the Shahab, according to Iranian data, have a range of more than 1.5 thousand km. But how were these characteristics tested? Let us remind you that the distance between the northwestern and southeastern points of Iranian territory is a little more than 2 thousand km. If we take into account that missile ranges are not located near the borders, then Iran does not have the ability to fully carry out actual missile launches at such distances without the threat of violating the borders of neighboring states.

The media published data obtained from photographs taken by the QuickBird reconnaissance satellite. According to MIT experts who are members of the institute's Science, Technology and Global Security working group, these images show the assembly and testing building and technical positions for servicing long-range ballistic missiles. The group of objects is located 230 km southwest of Tehran. That is, practically in the center of the country.
The other main training ground for Iranian missile forces is located near Isfahan (also almost in the center of the country).

In addition, there is no information that the Iranian authorities have officially announced certain areas water areas Indian Ocean closed to shipping due to upcoming missile launches into these “squares”. It should be noted, however, that in the past few years, during numerous Iranian naval exercises, the Iranian authorities have blocked certain areas of the waters of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. It is likely that this was done for missile firing from Iranian territory. Moreover, it is significant that the area of ​​prohibited zones in water areas decreased from year to year, and several times. This may indicate that the accuracy of missile launches is increasing, and their CEP is decreasing.

On the other hand, it is quite possible to obtain the maximum range through mathematical calculations during flight tests without completely burning out the rocket fuel. But this will only be indicative data. Without full-scale tests with multiple real launches at the maximum (maximum) range, it is impossible to talk about the readiness of the missile to reliably perform its intended functions.

From the above data, it is quite correct to conclude that, despite all the difficulties and shortcomings, the rocket manufacturing potential in Iran is high. Moreover, Tehran is successfully transforming this potential step by step into real combat power.

Realities and prospects

In their portfolio, Iranian missile forces have numerous options for promising missile systems, which, if not today, then in the next five to seven to ten years, can become a real basis for the creation at the first stage of modern medium-range ballistic missiles (in their capabilities approaching ICBMs), and then intercontinental ballistic missiles themselves. Just one step - putting a satellite into orbit - is already a huge step towards the creation of strategic missiles.

But these are prospects. If we compare them with the existing potential and emerging opportunities, then today Iran is equipped with missiles rather modestly (albeit quite thoughtfully).

Thus, the Central Missile Command, subordinate directly to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief - the Spiritual Leader of the country, unites five missile brigades.

Two brigades of MRBM “Shahab-3D” and “Shahab-3M” (firing range -1300 km) - 32 launchers.

Two brigades of operational-tactical missiles "Shahab-1" (firing range - 285-330 km), "Shahab-2" (firing range - 500-700 km) - 64 launchers.

One tactical missile brigade.

It is noteworthy that the missile forces only have mobile launchers, which significantly increases their survivability - in a large area of ​​​​the huge arc of the northwest, west and southwest of Iran, from Iranian Kurdistan to the Strait of Hormuz, positional areas of missile technical bases have been created, with warehouses, reserves of fuel and lubricants and rocket fuel, and their own infrastructure , a developed system of communications between them.

Missile systems on combat duty constantly change their location. As a rule, launchers disguised as ordinary automobile trucks are accompanied by two similarly disguised transport-loading vehicles (TZM) with two missiles each. That is, the ammunition load of each launcher is five missiles. Liquid fuel rockets travel close to neutralization and refueling machines.

In addition to the missile forces subordinate directly to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the Iranian armed forces also have tactical missile units in the Army (six missile divisions) and the IRGC (eight missile divisions).

Thus, an analysis of the situation in Iranian rocket production and in missile forces indicates that the military-political leadership of Iran managed to form a diverse, large-scale arsenal of tactical, operational-tactical missiles and, most importantly, medium-range ballistic missiles. Iranian missile weapons have already become a real factor in geopolitical scenarios, expert and academic brainstorming on the situation around Iran and practical military calculations, which, of course, has an impact on the situation around Iran and in the Near and Middle East region and, accordingly, on the development of world processes in in general.

Millions of soldiers in the “sleeve”: what is the Iranian army like?

Iran has very ancient history. Until 1935, this country was called Persia - and in its past there were many pages associated with war. It was thanks to the successful campaigns of the Persian armies that the Achaemenid Empire once arose, named after the dynasty that ruled the Persians. By the end of the 6th century BC. the borders of this power extended in the east from the Indus River to Aegean Sea in the west, from the first cataract of the Nile in the south to Transcaucasia in the north. And such an expansion of the kingdom became possible primarily thanks to the army created by King Cyrus II. Along with cavalry and infantry, war chariots played a significant role in this army.

It is not for nothing that the leader of the Spravoros party, Mironov, called Iran “unique in everything..”. He is truly unique. In one of the blogs politics ( vk.com, ok.ru) his trip to this country was discussed, and Mironov spent a long time describing both the history and, most importantly, the potential of Iran. Especially in terms of relations with Russia... And there are reasons for this...

Iran is an ancient power. Centuries followed centuries, wars alternated with times of peace. In 1979, an Islamic revolution took place in Iran, overthrowing the pro-Western regime of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The country, shaken by revolutionary storms, faced a huge threat: in 1980, after the invasion of neighboring Iraq's troops into Khuzestan province, the Iran-Iraq War began, which lasted until 1988 and remains one of the largest armed conflicts after World War II.

The army of post-revolutionary Iran, which was in a state of formation (suffice it to say that its strength was reduced from 240 to 180 thousand people, dozens of military leaders were replaced by junior commanders, which significantly reduced the combat effectiveness of the army) managed to organize stubborn resistance and stop the advance of enemy troops. By the summer of 1982, the Iranians returned the territories occupied by Iraq, after which a war of attrition began.

Following the end of the war, the Iranian government launched a five-year rearmament program to replace weapons that had become unusable as a result of the fighting. Under the conditions of Western sanctions, this was not an easy task, since the Iranian army had been armed with primarily American-made equipment since the time of the Shah. We had to look for new sources of supplies of weapons and equipment. And also move along the path of import substitution. In particular, in the field of missile weapons development.

In September 2004, it was announced that testing was completed and put into service. new rocket long range - ballistic missile Shahab-3, which has a range of 1,500 km and is capable of carrying a warhead weighing one ton. And later it was stated that the missile’s range was 5,000 kilometers.

The modern armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran consist of the Iranian Army (Iranian Ground Forces, Iranian Navy and

Iranian Air Force), as well as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Iranian army is drafted for 2 years, but it is possible to legally pay off military service. The Iranian army is quite large compared to other Gulf countries. About 350 thousand people serve in it, of which 220 thousand are conscripts.

The Iranian army is divided into 4 districts, in each of which there are 4 motorized divisions, 6 infantry divisions, 6 artillery divisions, 2 special forces units, 1 airborne division, an aviation group, as well as other separate units: logistics brigades.

The Iranian army has more than 1,600 tanks at its disposal, including: 540 T-54/55, 480 T-72, 168 M47, 150 M60, 100 Chieftain, about 100 Iranian-made Zulfiqar tanks and 75 T-62 tanks.

In addition, Iran has 865 other units of military equipment, 550–670 infantry fighting vehicles, 2,085 non-self-propelled artillery, 310 self-propelled guns, about 870 multiple launch rocket systems, 1,700 air defense guns, a large number of anti-tank guns, as well as at least 220 helicopters.

The Iranian navy has about 18,000 personnel, including 2,600 in the marines and 2,000 in the naval aviation. Iran's naval bases are located in the cities of Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Chabahar, Bandar Khomeini in the Persian Gulf, and Bandar Anzali, Mehshahr on the Caspian Sea.

The task of the Navy is to conduct military operations against enemy ships and aircraft with the aim of gaining dominance in the waters of the Persian and Oman Gulfs, protecting territorial waters and the sea coast of Iran, ensuring the protection of coastal sea communications and disrupting enemy sea communications in the Caspian Sea, in the Persian and Oman Gulfs, providing direct support to ground forces and air forces during operations in maritime sectors, conducting maritime landing operations, fighting enemy amphibious assault forces, conducting continuous reconnaissance at sea.

It should be noted that Iranian sailors have experience fighting pirates from the Horn of Africa. After Somali "filibusters" seized an Iranian cargo ship off the coast of Yemen, ships of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy were sent to patrol the Gulf of Aden and repeatedly succeeded in thwarting pirate plans to hijack merchant ships and tankers.

The Iranian navy includes 3 submarines, 5 corvettes, 10 missile boats, 10 small landing ships and 52 patrol boats. In naval aviation (available only in the Persian Gulf) - 5 aircraft, 19 helicopters. The main suppliers of marine equipment to Iran are Russia and China. Currently, the company is developing its own small submarine, Sabiha.

The basis of Iran's submarine fleet is made up of 3 Soviet diesel submarines of Project 877 "Halibut" in modification 877EKM (export commercial modernized). Also, the Iranian naval forces have about 20 Iranian-made ultra-small submarines of the Al-Ghadir and Al-Sabehat 15 classes, which have low visibility, but at the same time limited autonomy and are capable of operating only in coastal waters.

Iran's air force is one of the most powerful in the region. The number of Iranian Air Force personnel is 52 thousand people, of which more than 30 thousand are directly in the Air Force and 15 thousand in the Air Defense Forces. There are about 300 combat aircraft in operation.

A significant part of the Iranian Air Force's aircraft is seriously outdated. More than half of all technical equipment is of American and French origin, and its full maintenance is almost impossible due to the sanctions imposed by these countries on Iran in the 1980s after the Islamic Revolution. The rest of the equipment is mainly of Russian and Chinese origin.

The Iranian Air Force fleet received an unexpected addition from neighboring Iraq - during the Gulf War in 1991, a large number of Iraqi Air Force aircraft (Mig-29 and Dassault Mirage F1) flew to Iranian airfields, fleeing coalition aircraft led by the United States. The Iranian side refused to return these planes, considering them a kind of reparation for damage in the Iran-Iraq war. And some of the Iraqi aircraft were included in the Iranian Air Force.

The Iranian Air Force includes 9 fighter-attack squadrons (up to 186 aircraft), 7 fighter squadrons (70–74 aircraft), one reconnaissance squadron (up to 8 aircraft), as well as transport and auxiliary aircraft. The basis of the striking power of the Iranian air force is the MiG-29, F-4, F-5, F-14 fighters, as well as Su-24 front-line bombers.

Iranian aircraft designers have put a lot of effort into creating domestically designed aircraft - Azarakhsh and Saeqeh. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) occupies a special place in the Iranian armed forces. This guards military formation is directly subordinate to the top leader of Iran.

The corps, in particular, is entrusted with the functions of assisting the army in protecting independence, territorial integrity state and the “Islamic republican system”, fighting against “subversive elements within the country, carrying out rescue operations in the event natural Disasters, providing assistance to public order forces, including in ensuring the security of government institutions, religious and political figures.

The number of the corps is about 125 thousand people. The IRGC has its own ground forces, air force and navy. The corps has a special division, “Qods” (“Jerusalem”), designed for military reconnaissance and special operations abroad.

Information has repeatedly appeared in the media about the participation of members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the war in Syria on the side of the troops of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Also under the command of the IRGC is the paramilitary organization "Basij" (translated as "mobilization"), which includes reservists of the army and the Guardian Corps itself. It is estimated that if mobilized, the Basij could provide at least 11 million soldiers to Iran's armed forces.

If the world were ideal, then no armies or weapons would be needed and there would never be wars. But the reality is that threats both abroad and domestically put national security at risk. This reality forces many states to have a powerful army in the form of human potential and weapons.
There are several outstanding armies that are widely known for their size, combat experience and military equipment. They are among the ten largest armies in the world.

1. China

The first place in the world in terms of army size is unsurprisingly taken by the most populous country in the world, Chinese People's Army. This nation is known not only for its large territory, but also for its huge population and, accordingly, the largest army. The Chinese People's Liberation Army was founded in 1927.

Its main part consists of citizens aged 18 to 49 years. Number of people: 2,300,000. Budget $129 billion per year. About 240 installations for launching nuclear missiles. The Chinese army is well trained and has large resources in weapons and mobilization resources in the event of war, it can put 200,000,000 people under arms. It is armed with 8,500 tanks, 61 submarines, 54 surface ships and 4,000 aircraft.

Russian army

The Russian army is one of the most experienced in the world. Its strength is 1,013,628 military personnel (according to the presidential decree of March 28, 2017). The annual budget is $64 billion and ranks 3rd in the world in terms of military spending. In service are 2,867 tanks, 10,720 armored vehicles, 2,646 self-propelled guns, 2155 towed artillery pieces. Russia also has the largest number of nuclear warheads in the world.

3.United States of America

US Army

The US Army was founded in 1775. The United States currently has 1,400,000 active military personnel and 1,450,000 in the active reserve. The defense budget is what truly sets the US apart from all the other countries on the list; it is over $689 billion per year.
The United States also has the most trained troops and a powerful arsenal. Its ground forces use 8,325 tanks, 18,539 armored combat vehicles, 1,934 self-propelled guns, 1,791 towed artillery pieces, and 1,330 nuclear warheads.

Indian Army

Located in southern Asia, India is the world's largest arms importer. With a strength of 1.325 thousand soldiers and officers. The Army's military budget is $44 billion a year. There are also about 80 nuclear warheads in service.

5. North Korea

North Korean Army

North Korea has a well-trained and coordinated army of 1,106,000, as well as a large number of reservists, 8,200,000 as of 2011. It also has a large number of weapons, they include: 5,400 tanks, 2,580 armored vehicles, 1,600 self-propelled guns, 3,500 towed artillery pieces, 1,600 air defense systems and other powerful weapons. Military conscription in this state is compulsory for everyone; the period of military service is 10 years.
While the totalitarian regime in North Korea built big army, most of its military equipment is considered obsolete. However, they have nuclear weapons, which in turn poses a threat to the stability of peace in this region.

6. South Korea

Photo of the South Korean Army

Next on the list of the largest armies in the world is the South Korean army. In this state, the conscription age is from 18 to 35 years, the service period is 21 months.
Its armed forces are called the Republic of Korea Army. It uses both domestic and imported weapons. It is armed with 2,300 tanks, 2,600 armored vehicles, 30 air defense systems and 5,300 artillery pieces. The number of its troops reaches approximately 1,240,000 people.

7. Pakistan

Pakistan Army

The Pakistan Army rightfully ranks among the largest armies in the world. It has a workforce of 617,000 people and a personnel reserve of about 515,500 people as of 2011.
Its ground forces use a wide range of weapons: 3,490 tanks, 5,745 armored vehicles, 1,065 self-propelled guns, 3,197 towed artillery pieces. The Air Force is armed with 1,531 aircraft and 589 helicopters. The naval force consists of 11 frigates and 8 submarines. With a budget of just over $5 billion, it is the smallest budget of the top ten military powers. Pakistan may be a small country in size, but it is undoubtedly one of the largest armies in the world in terms of size and military prowess. This army is also a permanent ally of the United States.

Iranian army

They say that the most powerful army in the Middle East is the army of Iran. Iran is also known for its large troop numbers. It has approximately 545,000 personnel, divided into 14 infantry divisions and 15 air bases. Their army is equipped with 2,895 tanks, 1,500 armored vehicles, 310 self-propelled guns, 860 air defense systems, 1,858 aircraft and 800 helicopters. The defense budget is just over $10 billion.

Turkish army

Türkiye has the largest army at the meeting point of Asia and Europe. Citizens are called up for service at the age of 20. Conscription lasts approximately 6 to 15 months, depending on the educational level of the students. The strength of the Turkish army is 1,041,900 people, of which 612,900 are regular military personnel and 429,000 are in the reserve. Its army is also well armed and has 4,460 tanks, 1,500 self-propelled guns, 7,133 armored vehicles, 406 air defense systems, 570 airplanes and helicopters. The annual budget of this army is 19 billion dollars.

10. Israel

Israeli army

The army of the State of Israel is known as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Men over 18 years of age are subject to conscription every year. Every year, about 121,000 men can be drafted into the army to serve in any of its military units. Currently, the Israeli army consists of 187,000 regular military personnel and a reserve of 565,000 people. As a result, the number of troops in the Israel Defense Forces is about 752,000. The army is equipped with the latest technology and is armed with 3,870 tanks, 1,775 armored vehicles, 706 self-propelled guns, 350 towed artillery pieces, and 48 air defense systems.

Not all countries in the world need a large army for reliable protection. However, maintaining peace and order would be impossible without a well-organized and armed army.

The Iranian army is the most powerful in the region, the expert community is confident. But along with the high motivation of its personnel, the Islamic army has a big drawback - outdated air force and air defense. The aggressive policy and nuclear ambitions of the Iranian leadership are preventing the large-scale rearmament of the national army. What is the situation of Iran's modern armed forces, Infox.ru found out.

The Iranian army is one of the strongest in the Middle East and the Islamic world. This corresponds to the status of a regional power. The Iranian National Army gained enormous experience during the brutal Iran-Iraq War. Then both sides used chemical weapon, and Iran used volunteer suicide bombers who walked into minefields ahead of tank columns. Now Tehran is striving to give the national armed forces a modern look, conducting developments in almost all military-technical areas - from tank building to missile technology. But the desire to have your own nuclear program negatively affects the renewal of the equipment fleet. Few can supply Iran with modern weapons without facing a negative reaction from the United States and Israel.

Guardians
Iran is a theocratic state. This also affects military development. The Ministry of Defense includes the armed forces and, separately, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The IRGC has its own navy, air force and ground forces. The body is the support of the regime. Its recruitment is carried out on a voluntary basis. The Guardians provide internal security and carry out activities abroad. The IRGC has a special forces unit called al-Quds Force (Jerusalem). It is the guards who are responsible for supporting the Hamas movement in Palestine, Hezbollah in Lebanon and militants in Yemen.

The approximate strength of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is estimated at 130 thousand people, of which 100 thousand are ground forces personnel. The corps is armed with armored vehicles, artillery systems, combat aircraft, and chemical weapons. The IRGC Navy includes Marines. When financing and updating military equipment, the country's leadership gives priority to the guards of the revolution.

Subordinate to the IRGC is the Basij people's militia ("Basij-i Mostozafin" from the Persian: "Mobilization of the Oppressed"). The militias gained greater fame in the summer of 2009 during the suppression of opposition protests. Iranian political military leaders often state the Basij number at 10 million. But these are mobilization capabilities rather than actual numbers. In addition, the “resistance forces” are divided into two directions: spiritual and propaganda and the military itself. Warhead"Basiji" consists of several hundred battalions with a total strength of 300 thousand people, which is also a lot. The militia is the army's first reserve in the event of hostilities. Reservists also provide security for rear facilities, freeing up the main units for the front line. The Basij consists of men aged 12 to 60 years. There are also women's battalions. As part of the national security concept of building a mass “Islamic army,” it is planned to increase the security forces to 20 million people, the basis of which will be irregular formations and a trained reserve.

Main army
Iran's armed forces number up to 350 thousand people. The Iranian army is recruited by conscription - only men are drafted. The service life is from 17 to 20 months. Citizens who have served under 55 years of age are listed as reservists. Over the past few years, the military budget islamic republic(separate from the IRGC) averages about $7 billion.

The ground forces (280 thousand military personnel) are armed with a variety of weapons acquired during different periods of Iranian history. Under the Shah, Iran preferred Western weapons: M-47, M-48 tanks, various modifications of the British Chieftain tank. The Iranians got a lot of captured Western and Soviet equipment after the Iran-Iraq war. In 1990, several hundred T-72S and BMP-2 were assembled under license in Iran, but this contract ended in 2000. Currently, the ground forces of the Islamic Republic are armed with up to 1.5 thousand tanks, 1.5 thousand infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, about 3 thousand artillery systems and more than a hundred army aviation helicopters.

The Iranian army's weakness is its outdated air defense. Namely, the air defense is entrusted with the task of protecting strategic facilities, including nuclear ones. Iranian airspace is guarded by American anti-aircraft missile systems HAWK, Soviet S-75 and S-200VE, Kvadrat mobile systems. Among the new products are 29 Russian Tor-M1s. There are also portable systems: “Igla-1”, “Strela-3”, Stinger, QW-1. “The Israeli or American Air Force will easily overcome Iranian air defense,” says Alexander Khramchikhin, head of the analytical department at the Institute of Political and Military Analysis. Therefore, Tehran urgently needs such a modern system as the S-300, an analogue of which is extremely difficult to create on its own. According to Khramchikhin, the recent announcement from the Iranian side about the creation of its own system, superior to the S-300, “is a bluff, and nothing more.”

Compared to the forces of potential adversaries, the Iranian air force also looks weak. Under the Shah, the Air Force was the elite of the army. Much attention was paid to their equipment; at that time the Iranian Air Force was considered the best among third world countries. But after the Islamic revolution, updating the aviation fleet became difficult. In 1989−1991, Iran acquired 20 MiG-29, 4 MiG-29UB and 12 Su-24MK bombers from the USSR. But the bulk of the military aircraft fleet is outdated American-made aircraft. About 130 F-14A, F-4 and F-5 fighters of various modifications (produced mainly in the 1970s) are in good condition. Recently, Iran managed to form a squadron consisting of Iranian Saegheh fighters. But, according to Alexander Khramchikhin, “this “newest” aircraft is a modification of the long-outdated F-5 Tiger.”

Iranian Navy are the strongest in the region, most of the fleet is located in the Persian Gulf. The main task is the possible blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, through which huge oil supplies are carried out to Western countries. Attack and sabotage ships are concentrated here (up to 200 boats belong to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps). Iran has diesel submarines (Soviet and home-built). The fleet has three small British-built frigates Alvand, 14 missile boats La Combattante II, two American corvettes Bayandor. The shipyards are building copies of British and French ships.

Iranian military-industrial complex
In the context of sanctions on arms supplies, Tehran is forced to actively develop its national defense industry. Developments in the rocket and space industry are controlled by the IRGC. This year, the Iranian military has already reported that the country has begun production of Nasr-1 anti-ship missiles and Qaem and Toofan-5 anti-aircraft missiles. In February, serial production of unmanned aerial vehicles began, capable of not only conducting reconnaissance, but also carrying out strikes. And the ground forces are armed with Iranian Zulfiqar tanks.

Most often, Iranian-made weapons are copies of foreign models in service with the Iranian army, or equipment provided by China or North Korea. The Iranian Sayyad-1A missile is based on the Soviet S-75 (provided by China). Acquired during the Iran-Iraq War, these missiles became the basis for the creation of the Iranian Tondar-68 tactical ballistic missile.

With the help of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the production of components and assembly of Scud-B missiles (Iranian designation Shehab-1) has been established at Iranian enterprises. The DPRK also supplied a longer-range version of the Scud-S (Shehab-2) with a range of 500 km. The North Korean No-dong-1 missile has become the Iranian Shehab-3, capable of hitting targets at a distance of up to 1000 km.

The basis for the Iranian anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) currently being manufactured is American missiles Taw (Iranian "Tophan" and "Tophan-2"), Dragon ("Saej" and "Saej-2"). But as often happens when weapons are copied, Iranian analogues are sometimes inferior to foreign originals.

Prospects
“Having such a high number and even personnel units of suicide bombers, the Iranian army has great offensive potential,” says Yevgeny Satanovsky, president of the Institute of the Middle East. In his opinion, despite a certain technical backwardness, the Iranian armed forces are a powerful modern army. The Iranian army is the most combat-ready in the region. The only competitor is Saudi Arabia, which has the most modern weapons. But Iran takes advantage not of quality, but of mass production, believes Alexander Khramchikhin. And in the event of a direct military clash between the two countries, the Arabians would be defeated, the expert believes.

One of the reasons for the high combat effectiveness of the Iranian army is the motivation of the personnel and the high-quality training of the reserve. Religious propaganda has a positive effect on the appearance of the army. The concept of national security involves the creation mass army with mobilization capabilities in wartime of up to 20 million people. A major re-equipment of the armed forces and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is also planned. In the meantime, the technical backwardness and heterogeneity of the military equipment fleet remains the Achilles heel of the security forces of the Islamic Republic.