Iran unveils advanced homegrown tank

Iran has unveiled a state-of-the-art tank dubbed "Karrar" which has been fully developed by domestic military experts, ISNA reported.

Karrar (Striker) was unveiled in a ceremony on Sunday attended by Defense Minister Hossein Dehqan, who acclaimed the tank as a symbol of Islamic Republic's power.

Iran also announced that it has launched a mass-production line of the tank.

During the ceremony, Dehqan said that the advanced tank, with its various capabilities, can play an important role in updating the country's armored fighting vehicles.

"Karrar is manifest to high aptitude, exemplary creativity and superb capabilities of the Defense Ministry experts," he said.

He further said that the new achievement is living proof that the resistance economy works and that the anti-Iran sanctions have failed.

"Due to its unique features, Karrar is among the most advanced tanks throughout the world and is able to meet the needs of the Armed Forces," the defense minister said.

The domestically manufactured tank is equipped with an electro-optical fire control system and laser range-finder and is capable of hitting moving and fixed targets, he explained.

In December 2015, Iran announced plans to buy Russian-developed T-90 tanks provided that the UN sanctions that had targeted the Iranian military were lifted.

However, two months later, Iran said it was no longer interested in buying the Russian tanks and was planning to supply its needs through domestic production.

"We were once interested in buying the Russian tanks, but since we can manufacture similar models within the country and we plan to do so in the near future, the deal is now off," said Ground Force Commander Ahmad Reza Pourdastan in February 2016.

A week later, the Defense Ministry announced that it has manufactured a new tank - referring to Karrar.

"The defense industry designed and built the new battle tank from scratch. If not better, it's still as deadly as the Russian T-90," said Dehqan.

Iran has been producing its own weapons and military equipment for more than two decades. It has manufactured missiles, fighter jets and submarines.