Iran Is Likely to Have Yars Intercontinental Ballistic Missile

In recent days, a strange claim has been made about Iran's ballistic missiles that needs to be investigated.

News ID: 87058

Date: 21 December 2025 - 09:37

TEHRAN (Defapress) - Ballistic missiles have played an important role in the battles of the 21st century, and it is these missiles that largely determine the fate of the war between the two countries.

Intermediate-range and intercontinental missiles are one of the important components and components in the deterrence capability of the world's powerful countries, which, in the event of a battle, can hit important centers of the target country in distant places with high speed and power.

One of the missiles that has seriously demonstrated its power in recent years is the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, also known as the RS-24; in this report, we are going to discuss the features of this powerful missile.

The RS-24 Yars intercontinental missile

The RS-24 Yars missile, also known as the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, is one of the most advanced missiles in the Russian strategic arsenal. Developed to bolster nuclear deterrence in the post-Cold War era, the Yars combines high mobility, multi-warhead capability, and survivability against missile defense systems.

The Yars entered service in 2010 and has since become a mainstay of Russia’s strategic missile forces. It can be launched from both underground silos and mobile road-based systems. What makes the Yars special is its use of MIRV (Multiple Independently-targetable Reentry Vehicle) technology. This technology allows a single launch to deliver multiple nuclear warheads to different targets. The Yars’ high accuracy, combined with modern guidance systems, increases the likelihood of successfully penetrating enemy defenses even in the event of a nuclear war.

In recent months, the Yars launch has been back in the media spotlight. Ukrainian intelligence reports in May 2025 indicated that Russia intended to conduct a training and combat launch of the missile, although the launch was said to have either failed or been canceled. Whether due to a technical failure or strategic considerations, the event highlights the geopolitical significance of the Yars strategic missile, not only as a weapon but also as a tool for political influence.

Yars strategic missile specifications

The Yars missile is the product of decades of strategic missile development in the Russian Federation, designed to modernize the nuclear deterrent and outpace evolving missile defense systems. Officially designated RS-24 Yars, it is an intercontinental ballistic missile; the Yars is a three-stage solid-fuel missile that is an evolution of the older Topol-M platform. Its main difference from the more famous Topol missile is its MIRV capability. Unlike the Topol, which carried only one warhead, the Yars carries multiple independent warheads, which increases both its lethality and survivability against interception.

The Military Defense and some Western military media reports indicate that the RS-24 is a missile that is heavier than the SS-27 Mod, the current Topol-M, and some reports say that it can carry up to 10 independently targetable warheads. News of the missile’s 2007 tests was released as a response to the missile shield that the United States planned to deploy in Europe. The RS-24 has been operationally deployed since 2010 and has been operational with more than 50 launchers since June 2017. With a range of 11,000 to 12,000 kilometers, a speed of about Mach 20, solid fuel, and an accuracy of about 150 meters, the Yars missile can hit targets from very long distances with high power and inertial guidance.

In June 2008, Yuri Solomonov, chief designer of the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology, announced that the RS-24 was a developed MIRV version of the Topol-M missile, which had passed all tests that year; and on October 10, 2009, General Andrei Shevchenko, then commander of the Russian Strategic Missile Forces, confirmed the deployment of the RS-24 in an interview with the Itartas news agency, stating that the missiles would support the existing RT-2PM Topol-M (RS-12M2) missile complex.

The Russian military also successfully tested the missile in its units during exercises in 2017. Business Insider reported that the solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile, the R. The S-24 Yars was successfully fired by the mobile launcher units of the Iranian army's missile unit in a military exercise. According to this report, the distance between the launch site and its landing was more than five thousand miles.

Do Iranian missile units benefit from the Yars intercontinental missile?

Some Western media outlets are trying to instill in people that Iran has no industry of its own and that all its military industries are imported; in addition to Russia, the United States has also copied Iran's Shahed 136 drone models. Scott Ritter says in this regard: I always said to myself that if Russia is a friend of Iran, why doesn't it give Iran the Yars missile?! He then claimed: The Iranians said that we have this missile, but not with that name; the name of that missile in Iran is something else, but with the same power, and Israel has no defense against it... Nothing!

Regardless of the truth or falsity of this claim, it is worth considering that Iran does not need this missile if its target is the occupied territories; powerful hypersonic missiles such as "Fatah" and "Kheibar Shekan" are missiles that passed their test in the 12-day imposed war and showed that no shield can counter them; Iran also has the "Qassem Basir" missile, which can hit targets with great accuracy without even a meter of error in targeting Israel; therefore, with these interpretations, perhaps having or not having the "Yars" missile, with an accuracy of 150 meters, is not very relevant.

Another point about the noteworthy claim of "Scott Ritter" is that Iran has not yet displayed a missile similar to the "Yars" missile in the unveilings of its ballistic missiles; unless this missile is one of the missiles that can be placed on a launcher for times of need and at the right time and launched towards the occupied territories.