A spokesman for Iran's Khattam al-Anbiya Central Command said, quoted by Iranian state television, that the Iranian armed forces did not fire missiles at “friendly and neighboring“ Turkey.
“Considering the past provocations of American leaders and the Zionist regime, it appears that such an action was taken with the aim of damaging relations between the two countries - Iran and Turkey - by the US and the Zionist regime, which requires investigation“, the statement said.
Earlier on March 13, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced that an Iranian missile had been shot down in Turkish airspace. The Turkish website Savunma Sanayi, dedicated to the defense industry and military aviation, identified Incirlik Air Base as the target. The missile was shot down by NATO forces.
The Incirlik Air Base in the east of the country is home to American non-strategic nuclear weapons - B61 gravity bombs. They currently have three varieties - B61-3, B61-4 and B61-12 - with a yield of 0.3 to 170 kilotons. The United States has approximately 200 of these bombs, of which approximately 100 are located at six bases in five NATO countries, including Turkey.
This is the third Iranian missile shot down over Turkey. Previously, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced the shooting down of two ballistic missiles launched by Iran on March 4 and 9. Iranian authorities denied any involvement in either incident.