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Project Koussar, also known as Project Kowsar, is an alleged intermediate range or intercontinental ballistic missile program of the Islamic Republic of Iran. ==Overview== According to an article published on the Jane's Defence Weekly's September 13, 2006 issue, which quotes unnamed Western diplomatic sources, the alleged new missile will be independent of the current Shahab family of missiles, and will have a range of 4,000 to 5,000 km.〔(Jane’s: Iran Developing New Long-Range Missile ) Missilethreat.com〕 Development is reportedly being led by Iran's Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group, which is responsible for Iran's ballistic missile program. The program is allegedly attempting to reverse-engineer an RD-216 engine, which Iran has probably acquired from Russia in the late 1990s. The RD-216 engine was used in - the now obsolete - Russian R-14 Chusovaya (SS-5 Skean) IRBM and in the SL-8 Cosmos launch vehicle. Jane’s notes that "Project Koussar" is believed to be in the preliminary design review stage, and quotes sources stating that Iran is making progress in the RD-216 reverse engineering.〔〔(Iran missile, nuclear threat 'real, dangerous' - Russian analyst ) RIA Novosti, 2009-03-12〕〔(Iran's ballistic missile developments - long-range ambitions ) Jane's Defence Weekly 2006-09-08〕 The book ''Iran's Military Forces and Warfighting Capabilities'' by Anthony H. Cordesman and Martin Kleiber mentions Project Koussar in its description of the Shahab-5 and Shahab-6 missile projects, which also are allegedly based on the RD-216 engine. According to the book, "the effort to develop an ICBM with the Russian RD-216 engine in some sources has been named 'Project Koussar.' There reports (the missile projects ) remain uncertain, and Israeli media and official sources have repeatedly exaggerated the nature and speed of Iranian efforts."〔(Cordesman, Kleiber: Iran's Military Forces and Warfighting Capabilities ) Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007〕 The book ''Tehran Rising'' by Ilan Berman also mentions the missile project. According to the book, "Opposition groups have charged that Iran's overt missile development masks a much larger clandestine endeavor - one that encompasses both the 4,000-kilometer range Shahab-5 and even a follow in intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) known as the 'Kowsar'. This assessment rings true; according to U.S. intelligence officials, Iran is now estimated to have made sufficient headway to allow for testing of ICBM components in 2005."〔(Ilan Berman: Tehran Rising ) Rowman & Littlefield, 2007〕 An article published by the RIA Novosti news agency in March, 2009, states, that some unnamed Western and Russian sources claim that Iran may be currently running a program dubbed Project Koussar to develop an IRBM. According to Major General Vladimir Dvorkin, head of the Moscow-based Center for Strategic Nuclear Forces, quoted by the RIA Novosti article, "Iran is actively working on a missile development program. I won't say the Iranians will be able to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles in the near future, but they will most likely be able to threaten the whole of Europe."〔 An Israeli article published in 2000 predicted, that the development of the Kowsar 4,000-5,000 km-range missile will be completed by 2010. The article is allegedly based on CIA reports.〔(Future Global Nuclear Threats ) A report for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, 2001〕 According to some sources Project Koussar might be another name for Shahab-6.〔(Missile Program - Text of the Press conference by Ms. Samsami, NCRI US Represent )〕〔(Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, December 2002, pages 84-88 )〕〔(Iran: Tehran Has Tested Shahab 4 Missile, Opposition Group Says )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Project Koussar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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