TEHRAN - Iran's missile program, which has seen rapid development in recent years, is considered a cornerstone of Iran's defense strategies. 

To counter US hegemony in West Asia and change the regional order, Iran relies on these defensive capabilities. This has caused Western countries to try to slow down Iran's missile program, through media war, political statements, and of course, sanctions.

In this regard, three European countries (the European troika of Britain, France and Germany) recently issued a statement verbally attacking Iran's missile program. Media commotion, political statements, and sanctions are the approaches these countries are adopting. This approach is endorsed by Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior member of The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), who wrote an article in Politico on July 4. The article, titled “Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities are a growing threat to Europe,” suggests that maintaining and expanding sanctions is a solution to stopping Iran's missile development.

The article introduces Iran's new long-range missiles, Kheybar and Khorramshahr, as a serious threat to the missile defense system of the United States and Europe. According to the article, Iran's missile program increases the threats to Europe. Politico's report also goes on to explain Iran's missile successes, stating, "In 2022, Tehran conducted several across-border missile operations in Iraq, killing an American citizen and developing the largest solid-fuel rocket engine for use in the aerospace industry, which potentially could be used to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles." The author of the article eventually suggests that increasing pressure on Iran and maintaining missile sanctions is the only way to counter Iran's missiles.

Regarding Politico's report and European countries' concerns about Iran's missile program, some noteworthy points are as follows:

Europe's offensive behavior is not in the interest of Europeans.

Iran's missile program has a completely defensive structure. The history of recent decades confirms this fact. Moreover, even in the defense sector, Iran acts cautiously in using missile capabilities. For this reason, Iran has limited the range of its missiles to 2,000 kilometers.

This self-imposed limitation has been explicitly chosen to maintain peaceful relations with Europe. As Sardar Hajizadeh, the commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, had announced, Iran has deliberately limited the range of its missiles to "preserve European respect," even though reports, including the recent one by Politico, show that Iran has the technical ability to develop longer-range missiles. According to a report by Haaretz in 2022, Iran also has the ability to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles. 

However, at least in official and public positions, Iran has not shown a practical inclination to increase the range of its missiles in a way that would put Europe within reach. Nevertheless, in recent years, there have been signs of a change in attitude among Iranian officials. Accordingly, IRGC commanders have threatened that "if Europe does not comply, Iran will increase the range of its missiles."

This change in attitude is largely due to fundamental changes in the positions of European countries. For decades, despite hostile positions against the Islamic Republic, European countries have refrained from making "existential threats" against Iran. However, positions such as the possibility of designating the IRGC as a terrorist group will change Iran's relations with Europe. Existential threats are threats that directly target the survival of countries, such as the threat of using nuclear weapons or targeting the official military foundations, which are different from other normal threats. Additionally, European countries' efforts to renew bans on Iran's missile program, which were emphasized in a statement by the European troika a few days ago, are not tolerable for Iran.

In fact, what accelerates Iran's missile program to become a real threat to Europe is precisely the increase in hostile behavior by Europe and the negative transformation of bilateral relations. What Politico's report recommends to Europeans - that is, imposing further restrictions on Iran - leads to the same result that Europe fears. If Europe does not want Iran's missiles to reach London and Paris, it must refrain from hostile behavior.

Europe's concerns about the emergence of Iran

In recent years, Iran's foreign policy has moved towards adopting pragmatic strategies instead of following predetermined directives from major powers. Every threat from other countries is met with Iran's counter-threat strategies. In fact, Iran's defensive capabilities have increased in proportion to increase in threats from Europe. Instead of worrying about Iran's missile program, it is reasonable for Iran to feel threatened by Europe's offensive weapons. While Iran's missile range has not exceeded 2,000 kilometers, European countries have long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles, which are capable of carrying nuclear warheads. In a statement four days ago, the UK and France declared Iran's missile program to be in violation of international rules. 

Furthermore, Europe has a developed air force that Iran has been unable to balance against due to sanctions. Given Europe's historical hostile behavior, it is natural for Iranian officials to be concerned about their country’s future security. Therefore, Iran's missile program development is a pragmatic approach that any independent country in the world would follow to address such concerns. European governments should care about Iran's missile development program, as they make threats against Iran.

Although Iran's missile development program may be a threat to Europe, the main concern of European countries is not the emergence of Iran as a regional power. The media hype against Iran's nuclear and missile programs is created for the purpose of expanding the influence of any emerging power in the current international system. Developing nuclear and missile programs is essential for any emerging power to expand its influence in the current international system.