WHY THIS MATTERS: Reconstituting the missile program is crucial for Iran, which believes another round of war with Israel may happen. The missiles are one of Iran\u2019s few military deterrents after the 12-day war with Israel in June decimated its air defense systems.<\/p>\n
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) \u2014 Iran has begun rebuilding missile-production sites targeted by Israel during its 12-day war<\/a> in June, satellite images analyzed by The Associated Press show, but a key component is likely still missing \u2014 the large mixers needed to produce solid fuel for the weapons.<\/p>\n Reconstituting the missile program is crucial for the Islamic Republic<\/a>, which believes another round of war with Israel may happen. The missiles are one of Iran\u2019s few military deterrents after the war decimated its air defense systems \u2014 something that Tehran long has insisted will never be included in negotiations with the West.<\/p>\n Missile experts told AP that obtaining the mixers is a goal for Tehran, particularly as it prepares for possible United Nations sanctions<\/a> to be reimposed on the country later this month. The sanctions would penalize any development of the missile program, among other measures. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is due to address the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday.<\/p>\n Known as planetary mixers, the machines feature blades that revolve around a central point, like orbiting planets, and offer better mixing action than other types of equipment. Iran could purchase them from China, where experts and U.S. officials say they\u2019ve purchased missile fuel ingredients and other components in the past.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they\u2019re able to reacquire some key things like planetary mixers, then that infrastructure is still there and ready to get rolling again,\u201d said Sam Lair, a research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies who studied Iranian missile sites.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s mission to the United Nations did not respond to questions about the country\u2019s efforts to rebuild its missile program.<\/p>\n Israeli war targeted solid-fuel missile sites<\/p>\n Solid-fuel missiles can be fired faster than those using liquid fuel, which must be loaded just before launch. That speed can make the difference between launching a missile and having it destroyed in a launcher \u2014 something that happened during the war with Israel.<\/p>\n Iran has solid-fuel missile manufacturing bases at Khojir and Parchin, two sites just outside Tehran, as well as at Shahroud, some 350 kilometers (215 miles) northeast of the capital. Even before the most recent war, all of those sites<\/a> came under Israeli attack<\/a> in October 2024 during hostilities between the countries.<\/p>\n Attacks during the war in June appeared aimed at destroying buildings that housed the mixers, which are needed to ensure the missile fuel is evenly combined, according to experts. Other sites struck by Israel included manufacturing facilities that likely could be used to make the mixers.<\/p>\n Satellite images from Planet Labs PBC taken this month and analyzed by AP show construction at both the Parchin and Shahroud facilities.<\/p>\n At Parchin, mixing buildings appear to be under repair, Lair said, and similar rebuilding is happening at Shahroud involving mixing buildings and other structures.<\/p>\n The speed at which Iran is rebuilding shows the importance Tehran puts on its missile program. Iran\u2019s bombed nuclear sites so far have not seen the same level of activity.<\/p>\n During the war, Iran fired 574 ballistic missiles at Israel, according to the Washington-based Jewish Institute for National Security of America, which has a close relationship with the Israeli military. In two exchanges of fire before the war, Iran launched another 330 missiles, the think tank said.<\/p>\n The Israeli military had estimated Iran\u2019s total arsenal at around 2,500 missiles, meaning that over a third of its missiles were fired.<\/p>\n Before the war, Iran was on track to be able to produce more than 200 solid-fuel missiles a month, said Carl Parkin, a summer fellow at the James Martin Center. That drew Israeli strikes to missile-building facilities.<\/p>\n \u201cIsrael\u2019s targeting indicates that they believed mixing was a bottleneck in Iran\u2019s missile production,\u201d he said. \u201cIf Iran is able to overcome their mixing limitations, they\u2019ll have all the casting capacity that they need to start producing at high volumes again.\u201d<\/p>\n The Israeli military declined to respond to questions over its strategy. Iran\u2019s defense minister, Gen. Aziz Nasirzadeh, recently claimed Tehran now has new missiles with more advanced warheads.<\/p>\n \u201cThe 12-day war with Israel has altered some of our priorities,\u201d he said on Aug. 22. \u201cWe are now focused on producing military equipment with higher precision and greater operational capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n Chinese mixers seen at Syria missile site affiliated with Iran<\/p>\n Iran may choose to rely on China to obtain mixers and the chemicals to make solid fuel.<\/p>\n Such chemicals may have caused a massive explosion in April<\/a> that killed at least 70 people at a port in Iran. Iran still has not explained the blast, which happened as its diplomats met with Americans in Oman over its nuclear program<\/a>.<\/p>\n Just days after the explosion, the U.S. State Department sanctioned Chinese firms it said provided the Islamic Republic with \u201cballistic missile propellant ingredients.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard likely supplied a planetary mixer to an underground ballistic missile construction facility in Syria near the town of Masyaf, some 170 kilometers (105 miles) north of the capital, Damascus, near the Lebanese border. Footage released by the Israeli military months after the September 2024 raid on the facility showed the mixer, which bore a resemblance to others sold online by Chinese firms.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s president and military officials visited Beijing earlier this month for China\u2019s Victory Day parade<\/a>. Iran\u2019s government has provided no detailed readout on what Pezeshkian said to Chinese President Xi Jinping, and China\u2019s state-run media offered no indications that Tehran asked for help.<\/p>\n The Chinese Foreign Ministry, asked about possibly supplying Tehran mixers and fuel ingredients, told AP that Beijing is \u201cwilling to continue leveraging its influence to contribute to peace and stability in the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cChina supports Iran in safeguarding its national sovereignty, security and national dignity,\u201d the ministry said. \u201cAt the same time, China is deeply concerned about the continued escalation of tensions in the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n Can Kasapo\u011flu, a senior fellow with the Washington-based Hudson Institute, said Beijing could supply guidance systems and microprocessors as well for Iran\u2019s ballistic missiles.<\/p>\n \u201cIf Iran uses its relationship with China to bolster its disruptive military capabilities, the 12-day war could be a mere speed bump for the Iranian regime, rather than a decisive defeat,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n Lair, the analyst, said if Iran restarts its production at prewar levels, the sheer number of missiles produced will make it harder for the Israelis to preemptively destroy them or shoot them down.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are clearly very invested in their missile program, and I don\u2019t think that they\u2019re going to negotiate it away, ever,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York<\/a> and Outrider Foundation<\/a>. The AP is solely responsible for all content.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n