TEHRAN, May 31: Iran has begun manufacturing its first locally made anti-ship missile, a "kind of cruise missile" named the Kosar, the state-run news agency IRNA reported on Monday.

Quoting the Islamic republic's defence ministry, the report said the missile was being made by Iran's Aerospace Industries Organization and had been "designed for defensive purposes".

According to the report, the new missile can target its goals in three different positions as coast to sea, sea to sea and air to sea, and has been designed to be either televised or radar guided.

"The new missile has been designed according to geographical specifications of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman," the report added, without specifying its range. -AFP