Iran has one of the largest missile arsenals in the Middle East, with more than 3,000 ballistic missiles, according to a U.S. estimate.
The country does not yet have nuclear weapons, but several of those missiles could carry atomic charges if Iran were to develop that type of weaponry. Iranian missiles are largely based on North Korean and Russian designs, perfected with Chinese technology, says Peter Bergen. In recent months, Iran has used these missiles against Israeli interests or insurgencies hostile to its regime in several countries in the region, he says. The United States Institute for Peace says Iran has manufactured thousands of advanced surveillance, reconnaissance and combat drones. The group says Iranian drones have become one of. the greatest assets of the so-called Axis of Resistance (Iran, Hezbollah, the Houthis of Yemen and the pro-Iranian militias of Iraq and Syria) and which. Russia has frequently used in attacks against Ukraine, Bergen says.. Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without limits.