Cruise Missile Launched from Submarine in Iran During Velayat-97 Navy Drill

Iran has, for the first time, launched a cruise missile from submarine during the annual "Velayat-97" military drill in the Strait of Hormuz.

A video of a green submarine on the surface of water launching an orange missile was released by Fars news agency. It said other submarines have the same capability. It did not provide details on the missile's range.

The missile is an upgraded version of the Nasr-1 missile the country had showcased in 2008. It was then described as an anti-vessel missile with a range of 35 kilometers (or 22 miles), according to Iranian media.

Iran frequently touts its military arsenal, much of which is manufactured locally because of international sanctions. The Strait of Hormuz, at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, is a crucial bottleneck for global energy supplies, with about a third of all oil traded by sea passing through it.

Tehran's recently unveiled home-made ‘Fateh’ submarine and ‘Sahand’ destroyer are among other vessels used in the drill, PressTV reported.

Qader and Qadeer missiles were fired from Shaheed Naqdi destroyer and the missile-launching frigate Tabarzin respectively on Saturday, the second day of the three-day drill. A surface-to-sea missile system also fired a Qader missile that destroyed designated marine targets.

The domestically-made Tareq submarine fired an electric torpedo while the Ghadir submarine launched the Iranian Valfajr torpedo.

In another operation, an SH helicopter fired a Mark 46 torpedo to detonate a marine target, the report stated further.