President Donald Trump has said further military operations against Iran are planned, and the Pentagon said on March 2 that the United States is ready to send more troops to fight Iran.
Iran has already launched retaliatory attacks against Israeli and US military facilities in the Persian Gulf.
How big is Iran? Iran is the 17th largest country in the world after Sudan and Libya. The area is approximately 636,000 square miles.
Now let’s compare the US military and Iran.
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How strong is Iran’s military compared to the United States?
Iran continues to develop long-range missile technology under the watchful eye of its space launch program, but has not yet tested or launched any missiles that could potentially attack the United States.
What is Iran’s missile range capability?
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Iran has thousands of ballistic and cruise missiles, some of which can reach Israel and some capable of reaching Eastern Europe. Iran has the largest and most diverse missile arsenal in the Middle East.
Iran has made significant efforts over the past decade to improve the accuracy and deadliness of these weapons. With these advances, Iran’s missile forces are now a powerful weapon for projecting Iranian power and a real threat to the military power of the United States and its allies in the region.
Iranian missile attacks from 2017 to 2026
- In June 2017, six ballistic missiles were launched in Deir Ezzor, Syria.
- In September 2018, seven ballistic missiles were launched in Koya, Iraq.
- In October 2018, six ballistic missiles were launched at Abu Kamal.
- In September 2019, 18 drones were launched in Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia.
- In September 2019, three cruise missiles were launched in Khurais, Saudi Arabia.
- In January 2020, a ballistic missile was launched at Erbil Air Base in Iraq.
- In January 2020, more than 11 ballistic missiles were launched at Ain al-Asad Air Base in Iraq.
- Ballistic and cruise missiles launched in Erbil, Iraq in February and December 2021
- Ballistic missile launch in Erbil, Iraq in March 2022
- Ballistic and cruise missiles launched in Iraq and Syria in June 2023
- Ballistic and cruise missiles launched in Pakistan, Israel, Iraq, and Syria in January, April, and October 2024
- In June 2025, ballistic and cruise missiles were launched at Al Udidi Air Base in Qatar.
- In March 2026, neighboring countries launched ballistic missiles and cruise missiles targeting US military bases and Israel.
Source: Al Jazeera; Center for Strategic and International Studies. Council on Foreign Relations; USA TODAY investigation
