TEHRAN, Iran -- With an eye on U.S.-led nuclear talks, Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Friday announced it had test-fired a "new strategic weapon" in the final day of a large-scale naval and air defense drill, saying the system would play a key role in any future battle against the "Great Satan."
The claim was a new show of force by Iran weeks ahead of a deadline for reaching a deal over its nuclear program with the U.S. and other global powers.
Iran announced the test on the final day of military drills it is calling "Great Prophet 9." The exercises are being held near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which about one-fifth of the world's oil passes.
Iran often holds live-fire war games and frequently boasts of advances in its weaponry that cannot be independently verified.
The latest drill, which included a simulated attack on an American aircraft carrier, appeared to be aimed at sending a message that Iran has no intention of backing down to the U.S. in the nuclear talks.
Adm. Ali Fadavi, the Revolutionary Guard's naval chief, said the new weapon would be critical in any future naval war against the U.S.
"The new weapon will have a very decisive role in adding our naval power in confronting threats, particular by the Great Satan, the United States," he said on the Revolutionary Guard's website, sepahanews.com.
Fadavi told state TV that details of the weapon might be made public in coming years.
"We have restrictions to expressing specifications and applications of the weapon," he said.
A Section on 02/28/2015