Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has inaugurated a new submarine of national construction armed with cruise missiles.
"From now on, the Fateh submarine joins the Iranian naval force", Said Rouhani in an English language ceremony broadcast live on state TV.
The Fateh submarine "Conqueror" weighs 600 tons and "uses state-of-the-art weaponry, including torpedoes, naval mines and cruise missiles that could be launched from anywhere in the world."
The run-up to armaments for defensive purposes began since US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six other world powers last May and re-imposed sanctions on Tehran. Rouhani reiterated that the deal did not include restraints on Iran's development of ballistic missiles or its support for loyal militias in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq.
Iran has developed a large domestic weapons industry in the face of international pressure and embargoes that have prevented importing new armaments.
"Our armament is purely defensive ... The pressure and sanctions imposed on Iran have favored our progress," said Rouhani in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
Last year, the Iranian navy launched a national-origin destroyer, which state media says has stealth capabilities to evade radar.
Iran claims to have missiles with up to 2.000 km (1.250 miles), which puts Israel and the US military bases in the region at hand.
The European signatories of the Iranian nuclear agreement, despite having remained loyal to the pact, have however intensified their criticism of the Iranian ballistic missile program.