What the 4,000km Diego Garcia missile launch reveals about Iran’s intentions

2026.03.22 07:50 A Sejjil missile (left) is displayed at Baharestan Square in Tehran. Photo: AP By firing ballistic missiles at the UK-US Diego Garcia base nearly 4,000km (2,485 miles) from its shores, Iran is sending a message that it still has cards to play after three weeks of war, according to experts. A UK official source said Iran was “unsuccessful” in targeting the Indian Ocean military facility, one of two bases that London has allowed the US to use for certain missions in its war against Iran. Until now, most had believed Iran – under US-Israeli bombardment since February 28 – was unable to strike at such distances, though the feat was unlikely to alter the course of the conflict. The launch “is a notable development, since the British island used by US forces lies nearly 4,000km from Iran’s coast”, researcher Etienne Marcuz of the French Foundation for Strategic Research said on social media. That is “beyond the previously estimated maximum range of Iranian missiles”, he added. Previous assessments put Iran’s medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBM) at around 3,000km. The CSIS research centre’s missile laboratory estimated two MRMBs, the Khorramshahr and Sejjil, to have ranges of 2,000km, with the former still in development. The long range of the Diego Garcia shot could be due to a lighter warhead on the Khorramshahr-4, Marcuz said. “The lighter the payload, the farther the missile travels,” he said. A Sejjil missile (left) is displayed at Baharestan Square in Tehran. Photo: AP Other experts, including Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group, shared that view: “Depending on the weight of the warhead, Iran can increase the range of some of its missiles.” Tom Sharpe of the UK-based RUSI said Iran has “always had missiles of that sort of range”, even if they were never acknowledged. He said the launch shows Iran’s military can still “move these mobile launchers around, undetected, spin up and fire without being struck”. For many analysts, the real point was

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