TEHRAN (AFP) -- Iran's defense minister launched the domestic mass production of a new shoulder-fired air defense missile Sunday, a development presented as a major boost for the Islamic republic's armed forces.

The defense ministry said in a statement faxed to AFP that the Misagh 2 missile was "capable of tracking and destroying aerial targets that fly at low altitudes and in the blind spot of radar systems".

The ministry said the "advanced missile" could also be used for "electronic warfare".

"This missile gives our forces, army and Revolutionary Guards a drastic advantage, agility and flexibility in defending our air defenses," Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said in the statement.

"The space industry of the defense ministry currently mass-produces surface to air, surface to surface and air to surface missiles which have strong capabilities," he added.