Kowsar fighter plane

Iran is bracing up for US sanctions as it has started manufacturing its own locally designed fighter jet for use in its air force, state TV reported. It comes as Donald Trump’s administration prepares to impose another set of sanctions on Tehran.

Iran launched production of the domestically designed Kowsar fighter plane on Saturday, state television reported, after the United States announced the re-imposition of sanctions on Tehran.

“Soon the needed number of this plane will be produced and put at the service of the Air Force,” Defense Minister Amir Hatami said at a ceremony to inaugurate the production line.

He added that the venture highlights the capabilities of Iranian experts despite “sanctions by enemies.”

The event came a day after the United States said it would reintroduce wide-reaching sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sales and banking sector from Monday. With the clampdown, US President Donald Trump is hoping to force Iran to abandon its nuclear program, missile development and support for proxy forces in the Middle East.

The measures will be the second round of sanctions implemented by the US since Trump’s decision in May to withdraw from a 2015 landmark nuclear accord between Tehran and world powers.

Iran, which already uses US-made fighter jets and Russian-made Sukhoi planes, first unveiled its Kowsar aircraft in August. It says the model is “100-percent indigenously made” and capable of carrying various weapons, but some experts claim it is an exact copy of the F-5 jet first produced in the US in the 1960s.

(Ein news)