Financial Times reports Iran weighs strikes on US bases in Bulgaria, Cyprus
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The Financial Times reported, citing two sources familiar with Iranian decision-making, that Tehran is weighing strikes on U.S. military facilities in southeastern Europe, including Bulgaria. One source said Cyprus is also among possible targets and that Iran would set no geographic limit on its retaliation if the United States attacks Iran directly.
Key Facts
- Bulgaria allowed the Bezmer air base to be used for refuelling American aircraft last month.
- One source named Cyprus, where the British Akrotiri air base was hit by a drone in March, as among the possible targets.
- One source said Iran would set no geographic limit on its retaliation if the United States strikes Iran directly.
- Iranian forces have also examined targeting undersea fibre-optic cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz if tensions escalate, the sources said.
- One source described Iran's attack on a U.S. base in Jordan last month, which killed three American soldiers, as Iran's most accurate long-range strike to date.
Reported Target Set
The Financial Times reported, citing two sources familiar with Iranian decision-making, that Tehran is considering strikes on U.S. military facilities in southeastern Europe. The report added that Bulgaria allowed the Bezmer air base to be used for refuelling American aircraft last month. Cyprus, where the British Akrotiri air base was hit by a drone in March, is also among the possible targets, the sources told the Financial Times. Washington had previously accused Iran of firing several missiles at the joint U.S.-British base on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean; the missiles fell short of the base, the report said.
Retaliation Calculus
One source told the Financial Times that Iran's response would depend on Washington's next steps. The source described Iran's attack on a U.S. base in Jordan last month, which killed three American soldiers, as Iran's most accurate long-range strike to date. That same source said the strike was also a message to Europe that it could be within missile range and must decide where it stands in the war. A second source said Iran would place no geographic limit on its retaliation if it comes under direct U.S. attack. Iranian forces have also assessed targeting submarine fibre-optic cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz if tensions escalate, the sources said.
Expert Assessment
Sidharth Kaushal, a researcher at the London-based Royal United Services Institute, told Al Arabiya that the threat from Iranian missiles to European targets is real but limited. Kaushal said Iran could target U.S. military assets in southern and southeastern Europe with medium-range ballistic missiles such as the Shahab series. He added that these missiles have limited capacity to cause large-scale damage against targets at very long distances.
1 source
Financial Times reports Iran weighs strikes on US bases in Bulgaria, Cyprus
