Iran has developed a new arsenal of undisclosed weapons, equipment, technologies, and tactical innovations that will be unveiled on the battlefield as “surprises” should another conflict erupt, a senior defense official announced Wednesday.
Brigadier General Reza Talaei-Nik, spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, said military commanders have deliberately shrouded the nation’s latest defense capabilities in secrecy, preserving them as strategic trump cards for future engagements.
“Commanders have orchestrated these surprises in a manner that upholds the principle of surprise while safeguarding military and defense intelligence they will be revealed when the battlefield demands,” Talaei-Nik told the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
The spokesman pointed to recent conflicts as proof of Iran’s ability to defy expectations, citing what he described as a miscalculation by adversaries who underestimated the nation’s capacity for prolonged warfare.
“The enemy believed that within the first days, our resilience and endurance across the defense industry, armed forces, society, economy, government, and state apparatus—would crumble,” he said. “Exactly the opposite transpired.”
From Conflict to Strength
Talaei-Nik emphasized that Iran’s armed forces and defense industrial base emerged from the 40-day Ramadan war stronger than before, having internalized a culture of continuous adaptation.
“Throughout the war, through operational, tactical, strategic, and technical experiences, we persistently refine our learning, skills, tactics, techniques, and strategies,” he stated.
Supply Lines Hold Firm
Describing Iran’s ability to sustain weapons and equipment deliveries throughout the conflict as another major surprise, Talaei-Nik said the armed forces and defense industry never faced critical shortages despite the war’s magnitude.
“One of the other surprises was that the Islamic Republic, its fighters, armed forces, and defense industry never ran short on the battlefield—neither in defensive capabilities nor in logistical support and weaponry,” he said.
He called this achievement maintaining supply lines despite the scale of adversary preparations—”the greatest surprise in the defense industry.”
Doctrine of Asymmetric Defense
Responding to questions about whether the recent war prompted doctrinal changes, Talaei-Nik said military planning continuously evolves in response to battlefield developments and shifts in the regional security environment.
Iran’s overarching approach, he explained, is “combined and asymmetric defense”—a strategy that maintains active deterrence while denying adversaries the initiative.
“It is defense with the objective of defending, but employing offensive approaches so the enemy does not seize the initiative,” he said.
Production Surge and Self-Sufficiency
Talaei-Nik revealed that Iran’s defense production more than doubled between the 12-day conflict and the subsequent Ramadan war, crediting collaboration among the Army, Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), private companies, and knowledge-based enterprises.
He emphasized cost-efficiency as a priority, noting that production costs for some Iranian systems range from one to 20 times lower than comparable foreign products.
Rejecting characterizations of Iran’s defense industry as dependent on reverse engineering, the spokesman declared: “Our scientific and defense community has moved beyond the stage of copying and reverse engineering.” He specifically cited drone and ballistic missile technologies as fields where Iran no longer relies on imitation.
Iran currently boasts over 90% self-sufficiency in defense production, manufacturing more than 1,000 types of weapons, military equipment, and ammunition domestically.
Export Priorities Shift in Wartime
While acknowledging growing international demand for Iranian arms with requests arriving from multiple regions before the recent wars Talaei-Nik said domestic requirements now take precedence.
“After the outbreak of the Ramadan war, our priority is first to meet the needs of our own armed forces,” he said. “We then pursue exports according to demand and our ability to supply them. In wartime, exports depend on having a surplus.”
Five Fronts of Victory
Talaei-Nik framed Iran’s wartime assessment as multidimensional, extending beyond conventional military operations.
“The battlefield must be viewed in its entirety,” he said, identifying five interconnected fronts: the military battlefield, the social battlefield (public presence), government service and support, diplomacy, and media. “These five fields determined the war’s trajectory toward the enemy’s failure and the Iranian nation’s victory.”
Notably, despite the subsequent 40-day war lasting longer and proving more intense, Defense Ministry casualties were halved compared to the 12-day war an achievement he attributed partly to strengthened air-defense capabilities, particularly systems designed to counter advanced and strategic drones.
Source: Iranian media (edite dby Al-Manar)