TEHRAN — The Iranian parliament has formally approved Mehrdad Ahlaki Kitapchi as the country’s new Minister of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, filling a critical vacancy created by the death of former defense chief Major General Aziz Nasirzadeh in joint strikes carried out by the United States and Israel.
Kitapchi, a veteran figure within the Islamic Republic’s domestic defense industry with decades of involvement in its ballistic missile development, assumed office after securing a decisive vote of confidence in the Majlis. Immediately upon taking the helm of the ministry, the newly confirmed minister issued an uncompromising warning concerning potential military confrontations, stating that the armed forces remain on high alert and prepared to repel any aggression.
"Our finger is on the trigger to fight the Zionists," Kitapchi declared in his first official address carried by domestic media, signaling that Tehran will maintain an assertive posture in response to regional threats and potential Israeli strikes.
Parliamentary Confirmation and Transition of Command
The confirmation vote in the Iranian parliament demonstrated decisive backing for Kitapchi among the country’s lawmakers during a period of acute national security sensitivity. Of the 277 members of parliament present during the legislative session, 237 voted in favor of his appointment, while 15 lawmakers cast opposing votes. The remainder abstained or did not register a vote, allowing Kitapchi to secure ministerial authority with an overwhelming legislative mandate.
The parliamentary endorsement concluded an urgent leadership transition prompted by the death of Major General Aziz Nasirzadeh. Nasirzadeh, an experienced military commander who previously served at the highest echelons of the armed forces before heading the defense portfolio, was killed in strikes attributed to the United States and Israel, an event that Iranian state media officially acknowledged on March 1. The loss of a sitting defense minister underscored the unprecedented intensity of direct confrontations involving Iran, Israel, and the United States, elevating the significance of selecting a successor capable of sustaining the country’s military production apparatus under operational duress.
By endorsing Kitapchi, Iranian authorities have placed the administration of the armed forces’ technological and manufacturing infrastructure into the hands of a veteran defense industrialist. The ministerial handover reflects a strategic continuity aimed at preserving weapons output, reinforcing national deterrence capabilities, and addressing logistical vulnerabilities exposed during recent confrontations.
A Career Rooted in Defense Technology and Sanctioned Programs
Born in 1958 in the northern city of Rasht, the provincial capital of Gilan, Kitapchi belongs to a cadre of senior administrators who have guided Iran’s defense-industrial base through decades of international isolation, embargoes, and covert conflict. Unlike traditional field commanders whose careers unfolded primarily within operational wings of the regular military or the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Kitapchi’s trajectory has been anchored in technological engineering, research oversight, and industrial leadership.
Over the course of several decades, he served in prominent management capacities across the Islamic Republic’s military manufacturing apparatus. His administrative portfolio includes past service as the head of the Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group (SBIG), a pivotal state entity widely recognized as central to the design, engineering, and manufacturing of solid-propellant ballistic missiles.
In addition to his leadership of SBIG, Kitapchi subsequently served as the managing director of the Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO). The AIO functions as the overarching state authority responsible for coordinating, financing, and directing the nation’s entire aerospace and missile manufacturing enterprise.
Kitapchi’s direct executive involvement in Iran’s missile architecture intensified during the second half of the 2000s, a formative period during which Tehran expanded the range, payload, and precision capabilities of its ballistic arsenal. Because of his senior administrative roles within SBIG and the AIO, Kitapchi’s name was formally incorporated into international sanctions registries compiled by foreign governments and multilateral bodies aiming to impede Iran’s ballistic missile and aerospace initiatives. His elevation to the ministerial post brings an individual directly tied to the development of the country’s most closely monitored defense programs into executive authority over the entire military procurement network.
Hardened Production Sites and the Relocation to Mountains
Following his confirmation, Kitapchi delivered his initial public statements to domestic outlets, with the official state news agency IRNA carrying his policy directives regarding defense manufacturing and preparedness for military conflict.
In his remarks, the new defense chief emphasized that the ministry, working in close coordination with domestic academic and scientific institutions, is restructuring the physical deployment of weapons production to shield facilities from foreign aerial bombardment and intelligence penetration. Rather than relying on traditional manufacturing sites that may be vulnerable to surveillance and air strikes, Kitapchi announced a deliberate shift toward deeply buried, fortified locations.
"We are not establishing new production facilities in old locations, but in the mountains and in secure places," Kitapchi stated.
This strategic dispersal into subterranean and mountainous complexes represents a core pillar of the ministry’s survival doctrine. By moving assembly lines, precision tooling centers, and supply depots beneath natural geological barriers, Iran seeks to ensure that its weapons production lines remain fully functional even in the event of sustained aerial campaigns. The initiative emphasizes continuous partnership with local universities, technical institutes, and research organizations, leveraging domestic engineering expertise to design and fabricate armaments without relying on external supply chains.
The focus on protective infrastructure directly aligns with the minister’s broader operational warnings regarding potential Israeli actions against Iranian soil. By underscoring that armed forces remain with their "finger on the trigger," Kitapchi sought to convey that defensive dispersal is paired with an operational readiness to retaliate immediately against any perceived aggression.
Advancing Domestic Aviation and the Indigenous Fighter Program
Beyond the relocation of assembly lines and missile industrial complexes, Kitapchi used his initial ministerial address to preview advancements within the Islamic Republic’s indigenous aviation sector.
The defense minister announced that an indigenous "heavy combat aircraft" developed entirely through domestic capabilities is scheduled to conduct its maiden flight within the coming year.
For decades, the development of domestic fixed-wing combat aviation has represented one of the most technologically demanding hurdles for Iranian aerospace engineers. While the country has successfully established prolific production lines for unmanned aerial vehicles, ballistic missiles, and surface-to-air defense systems, developing domestic airframes capable of heavy combat performance has historically required extensive research into metallurgy, avionics, propulsion, and systems integration.
Kitapchi’s announcement underscores the defense establishment’s intention to broaden its technological baseline from missile and drone technologies into heavier conventional aviation platforms. While specific technical specifications and design characteristics of the anticipated heavy combat aircraft were not disclosed in his preliminary address, the pledge to achieve a flight milestone in the near term reflects the ministry’s determination to demonstrate ongoing industrial progress despite tightening external embargoes and the targeted targeting of senior personnel.
As Kitapchi assumes formal command of the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, his tenure will be defined by the simultaneous challenges of shielding key military infrastructure from foreign attack, maintaining weapons production at elevated rates, and responding to high-stakes regional tensions. Backed by a decisive parliamentary majority and decades of institutional experience within Iran’s sanctioned missile and aerospace divisions, the new defense minister enters office with an agenda focused on industrial resilience, subterranean fortification, and unyielding military preparedness.
