"The Shahab-3 missile is the symbol of our strength and of the authority of Iran," a commentator said as the missiles and launchers rolled slowly past hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The parade marks the start of "Sacred Defence Week", dedicated to the hundreds of thousands of Iranians killed after the forces of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein invaded in 1980.

Iran has been constantly upgrading the Shahab-3 missile. The single-stage device is believed to be based on a North Korean design and thought to have a range of at least 2,000 kilometres (1,280 miles) -- meaning arch-enemy Israel and US bases in the region are well within range.

In Farsi, Shahab means "meteor" or "shooting star".

Tehran's rapid progress on its ballistic missile programme is a major cause for concern among the international community, particularly Israel, which is already alarmed over Iran's nuclear activities.

Iran refuses to recognise Israel and official dogma calls for the destruction of the Jewish state.

But the clerical regime here insists it is not seeking to develop missiles with a longer range than the Shahab-3, and has denied allegations that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. The country says its missiles will only be tipped with conventional warheads.

In May, Iran announced it had successfully tested a new solid fuel motor for the missile, a technological breakthrough given that the missile had initially been designed to work with less stable and less mobile liquid fuel.

In practice, that means the Shahab-3 missiles can be spread across the country and stored far from any refueling facilities in preparation for immediate deployment.