A military base deep inside Saudi Arabia appears to be testing and possibly manufacturing ballistic missiles, experts and satellite images suggest, evidence of the type of weapons program it has long criticized Iran for possessing.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman last year said that the kingdom would not hesitate to develop nuclear weapons if Iran did.
Ballistic missiles can carry nuclear warheads to targets thousands of kilometers away.
Officials in Riyadh and the Saudi embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
Jeffrey Lewis, a missile expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California, said heavy investment in missiles often correlates with an interest in nuclear weapons.
“I would be a little worried that we’re underestimating the Saudis’ ambitions here,” said Lewis, who has studied the satellite images.
The images, first reported by the Washington Post, focus on a military base near the town of al-Dawadmi, about 230km west of Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian capital.
Jane’s Defence Weekly magazine first identified the base in 2013, suggesting its two launch pads appear oriented to target Israel and Iran with ballistic missiles the kingdom previously bought from China.
The satellite images from November last year show what appear to be structures big enough to build and fuel ballistic missiles. An apparent rocket-engine test stand can be seen in a corner of the base — the type on which a rocket is positioned on its side and test-fired in place.
Such testing is key for countries attempting to manufacture working missiles, experts say.
Michael Elleman, senior fellow for missile defense at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Washington, also reviewed the satellite photos and said they appear to show a ballistic missile program.
The question remains where Saudi Arabia gained the technical know-how to build such a facility.
Lewis said the Saudi Arabian stand closely resembles a design used by China, although it is smaller.
Chinese military support to the kingdom would not come as a surprise. Beijing has increasingly sold armed drones to Saudi Arabia and other Middle East nations, even as the US blocks sales of its own to allies over proliferation concerns. It also sold Riyadh variants of its Dongfeng ballistic missiles, the only ones the kingdom was previously believed to have in its arsenal.
“I have never heard of such a thing as China helping Saudi Arabia to build a missile base,” Chinese Ministry of Defense spokeswoman Hua Chunying (華春瑩) said on Friday.
Neither Saudi Arabia nor China are members of the Missile Technology Control Regime, a 30-year-old agreement aimed at limiting the proliferation of rockets capable of carrying weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear bombs.
Saudi Arabia, along with Israel and the US, have long criticized Iran’s ballistic missile program, viewing it as a regional threat.
Iran says its atomic program is peaceful.
However, Western powers say it is pursuing nuclear weapons in the guise of a civilian program, allegations denied by Tehran.
Iran has relied on its ballistic missiles, as its air force is largely made up of pre-1979 fighter jets.
Saudi Arabia has a fleet of modern F-15s, Typhoons and Tornadoes.
Elleman said that while Saudi Arabian pilots are skilled, the kingdom still needs US help with logistics.
“Today, they rely heavily on direct American support. There is no absolute guarantee that US forces and supporting functions will aid a Saudi attack on Iranian targets,” Elleman told reporters. “Ballistic missiles are a reasonable hedge against those concerns.”
Saudi Arabia has been targeted by ballistic missiles fired from neighboring Yemen by Houthi rebels, some of which have reached Riyadh.
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