Speaking to voters in Nebraska, US President Donald Trump said Iran could potentially destroy major American cities, including Los Angeles and San Diego.
Retired colonel and military expert Mikhail Khodarenok said Tehran would need an intercontinental-range delivery system and a megaton-class nuclear warhead to carry out such a strike.
As an example, he pointed to Iran’s Khorramshahr missile, which has a range of about 2,000 kilometers. Khodarenok said Tehran currently limits the range of its missiles to roughly 2,000–2,500 kilometers for political reasons.
At the same time, he argued that the technical potential of the Khorramshahr could allow its range to be extended to intercontinental distances if the warhead weight were reduced.
Khodarenok said another major challenge would be creating a special warhead with an explosive yield of around 1–1.5 megatons. In his assessment, that level of power would be sufficient to inflict devastating damage on Los Angeles.
He also pointed to continuing discussions within Iran’s political elite about a possible withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. In his view, actions by the United States and Israel are strengthening those sentiments.
Khodarenok said Trump’s remarks about Los Angeles and San Diego should therefore not be dismissed outright and suggested that the United States and Israel could eventually face a new nuclear-armed state.
He added that after the start of the war with the United States, the idea of developing an independent nuclear arsenal gained broad support in Iranian society. For that reason, he did not rule out the possibility that Tehran could eventually acquire nuclear weapons.