Iran tests short-range missiles

Iran has tested two short-range missiles during a military exercise, Iranian state television reports.

It said the missiles fired were of the Tondar and Fateh-110 type. A multiple missile launcher was also tested.

Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards announced on Saturday it would hold several days of military exercises over the next several days.

The tests come as tensions between Iran and the West are on the rise over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Earlier this week, Iran disclosed that it was building a second uranium enrichment plant.

MAXIMUM MISSILE RANGE Shahab-3b: 2,500km Sajjil-1 and 2: 2,000km Shahab-3a: 1,800km Shahab-3: 1,300km Shahab-2: 500km Zelzal: up to 400km Fateh: 170km Sources: GlobalSecurity.org, AFP, Jane's Iran's arsenal of missiles

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted that the plant, near the holy city of Qom, was being built in line with UN regulations. He also said it was open for inspection by UN experts.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a cautious welcome to Iran's announcement that it would open the facility.

Leaders of the US, Britain and France have accused Tehran of building a new plant in breach of UN rules.

They raised the prospect of new, tougher sanctions against Iran if it does not fully co-operate with global powers.

Iran is due to meet with representatives of the so-called P5 + 1 on 1 October to discuss a range of issues, including its nuclear plans. The P5 + 1 groups together the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the US, Russia, China, the UK and France - along with Germany.

'Mock targets'

On Sunday, Iran's state-run al-Alam and Press TV channels said the missiles test-fired during the exercises were of Tondar and Fateh-110 type.

It did not give specifics on the range or other details.

However, Western defence experts say the Fateh, or Conqueror, missile has a range of up to 170km (100 miles).

The range of the Tondar missile was not immediately known.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on Saturday it would begin war games which would include surface-to-surface missile launches and long-term resistance.

It said the exercises - codenamed The Great Prophet IV - would be staged to "improve the Islamic Republic armed forces' defence capabilities".

"The exercise would see simultaneous and consecutive launches of a number of the missiles.

The missiles would be fired at mock targets," Brigadier General Hossein Salami, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's public relations office, was quoted as saying by Iran's Press TV.