Lawmaker says snapback sanctions will not shut country out of global economy

Iran has begun rebuilding missile production facilities damaged in June’s 12-day war with Israel, but experts say a crucial element for solid-fuel production remains missing: planetary mixers, according to an Associated Press report analyzing satellite imagery.

Satellite images reviewed by AP show construction at missile sites in Parchin and Shahroud, where buildings housing mixers appear under repair.

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Satellite images reviewed by AP show construction at missile sites in Parchin and Shahroud, where buildings housing mixers appear under repair.

“If they’re able to reacquire some key things like planetary mixers, then that infrastructure is still there and ready to get rolling again,” said Sam Lair of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

Solid-fuel missiles are central to Iran’s deterrence strategy after Israeli strikes decimated much of its air defense.

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Iran operates solid-fuel missile production facilities at Khojir and Parchin, both near Tehran, as well as at Shahroud, about 350 kilometers (215 miles) northeast of the capital. All three sites were struck by Israel in October 2024, during earlier hostilities between the two countries.

Experts say the June strikes appeared designed to destroy buildings housing mixers, the machines essential for evenly combining missile fuel.

Iran had been producing more than 200 solid-fuel missiles a month before the war, according to AP.

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Iran fired more than 570 ballistic missiles during the conflict, depleting an estimated third of its arsenal, according to the Jewish Institute for National Security of America.

Western officials believe Tehran could try to source mixers and propellant chemicals from China, which has previously supplied materials for Iran’s missile program. Beijing said it supports Iran’s sovereignty but voiced “deep concern” over rising regional tensions.

Iran’s Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh said last month the country was now focused on producing “military equipment with higher precision and greater operational capabilities.”

Border Police sappers neutralized the device, and troops swept the area, the army said.

A week earlier, security forces raided a site near Ramallah, seizing dozens of rockets and arresting three suspects after an attempted launch.

Defense officials said, “foreign elements, led by Iran,” were working to promote rocket fire from the West Bank, which could place cities in central and northern Israel within range.

Iran has not commented on the allegations.

A senior Iranian government official accused the United States of poor conduct after Washington denied visas to most of President Masoud Pezeshkian’s media staff and imposed movement restrictions during his trip to the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Elyas Hazrati, head of the government’s information council, said Pezeshkian faced no pressure to meet US President Donald Trump, insisting the president makes decisions with his own team.

Hazrati dismissed US claims about lavish shopping by Iranian delegations as “nonsense,” adding: “Americans did not give visas to our journalists and this time their behavior was very bad.”

G7 foreign ministers on Wednesday called on Iran to fully meet its obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, resume cooperation with the UN atomic watchdog and engage in direct talks with the United States.

In a joint statement after talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, they also voiced support for the European powers’ decision to trigger the snapback mechanism to restore UN sanctions, saying it was key to ensuring Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.