How important is it to Lift Iran's arms embargo?

By: A.Tagavinia

According to UN Resolution 2231, within five months, Iran's arms embargo will be lifted and Iran will be able to buy and sell weapons.

This will be the beginning of a very important and strategic event in the West Asian region, because the Islamic Republic of Iran has been among the most developed countries in certain military technologies, and the country will be able to fill gaps of weakness both inside and outside it’s borders.

The history of Iran's arms embargo by the UN Security Council dates back to 2006, when Iran, under Resolution 1747, was banned from buying any heavy weapons such as aircraft, tanks and warships, exports of Iranian arms productions were also banned.

Ever since the resolution was passed against Iran, the country relied on domestic power in some important military industries such as UAVs and ballistic missiles, and completely localized production of air drones, sea drones a vas variety of missiles as well as many types of armored vehicles. Iran also managed to localize naval industries of its navy.

Comparing Iran's military budget with its neighbors shows that Iran has kept its territorial integrity and national security safe from threats at the lowest cost of expenditure. This fact by itself indicates that the country’s defensive strategies were indeed successful.

For some, the question may be, what will be the priorities for the purchase of military equipment after the lifting of Iran's arms embargo?

I believe that Iran is self-sufficient in ground forces, especially in light and semi-heavy weapons such as anti-armor, Iranian made military equipment were also successful in battles such as the 2006 battle between Hezbollah and Israel, the ongoing war between Yemen and Saudis, as well as the war on terror in Iraq and Syria.

regarding armored vehicles cavalry, considering the threats of the northwestern and southeastern borders, which are mostly non-classic, the purchase of advanced tanks does not seem to be one of the priorities of the Ministry of Defense. Especially since Iran also has no offensive intentions towards its neighbors.

In the maritime field, Iran produces all kinds of light and semi-heavy vessels and destroyers, surface-to-sea missiles both ballistic and cruise missiles, and surface-to-surface type, and considering its relative self-sufficiency in this category, as well as considering its limitations in this regard. Budget allocation does not seem reasonable to go to large maritime purchases.

But I believe that Iran's main weakness point is in its air force and fighter jets.

After the Islamic Revolution, Iran was no longer able to buy any aircraft from the West, and its Western aircraft, such as the Phantom, Tomcat, and Tiger, were severely damaged in the imposed war from Saddam’s west-backed regime.

However, Iran was kept completely dependent on the parts of these planes, according to a western policy to keep their clients dependent on them, which is why many of its aircraft were grounded.

Iran was forced to buy Eastern airplanes, the country managed to buy a limited number of MiG-29 tactical interceptors, Sukhoi 24 bombers and an F-7 fighter, which was the Chinese version of the MiG-21, which was not comparable to sophisticated fighter jets of its neighbors, such as Saudi Arabia.

However, with the help of its experts, Iran has been able to install many new equipment on its old aircraft and keep them ready for operation, but according to potential threats from southern neighbors and threats from new terrorist groups on eastern and western borders, the necessity of buying multi-role fighter jets was felt over the passage of time.

Therefore, immediately after the discussions of the JCPOA led into a signed agreement, efforts were made to purchase a large number of Sukhoi 30 SM class from Russia, the agreement with Russians is so far under low profile.

Iran's fundamental condition to purchase the advanced aircraft was its assemble and manufacture the aircraft inside Iran, Iran’s condition was well approved by Russians.

Some military sources report that the arrival of the new Sukhoi in Iran will definitely change the balance of power in the West Asian region in favor of Iran, because the Sukhoi 30 is capable of armament and maneuverability equal to American made Eagle F-15 fighter jets. F-15 fighter jets are used by Saudi and Israelis as their main fighter jets. The fighter jet has advanced abilities in both air dog fights and ground attack capabilities.

The Russian made Sukhoi 30 SM aircraft is able to travel a range of 3,000 kilometers without refueling, meanwhile carrying eight tons of bombs and missiles, which is a matter of concerns to Israelis and Saudis.

Due to the high power of ballistic and cruise missiles and Iran's drone units, the arrival of the new Sukhoi will greatly strengthen its offensive capability against regional threats, as these regimes have a large history of relying themselves on purchased western military industires.