Iran’s Options After US-Israel Joint Strikes: Tom Cooper Decodes The Defence At Rising Bharat

Last Updated:February 28, 2026, 17:08 IST

Tom Cooper at Rising Bharat: "Iran has multiple solutions. One of these will depend on the damage US airpower will cause..."

Tom Cooper, Austrian aerial warfare analyst and historian, spoke about the escalation of the conflict between US-Israel and Iran at the Rising Bharat summit on Saturday.

In a major escalation of regional hostilities, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Saturday launched missiles towards Israeli territory following a joint US-Israeli “pre-emptive" strike on Iranian territory.

From Iranian defence to US airpower, Cooper gave crucial insights into the crisis.

Op Midnight Hammer and Rising Lion: How were Israeli aircraft able to fly over Iran without any challenge?

“Israeli aircraft were never free to fly over Tehran. What Israelis were free to do were to fly up to the border and drop their missiles either over long-range or their GPS-assisted bombs on targets 100 km deep into Iran," said Cooper.

“There are two different and integrated air defence systems in Iran. One by the regular Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces’ traditional army (Artesh) and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)…There was a significant difference between what was said and reality…Israelis have these long-range missiles that were climbing over Iraq, west of Baghdad and deep over Iran…There is no evidence they operated the main aircraft that deep over Tehran," clarified Cooper.

US and China

“The US strike on Iranian nuclear facility was to gauge their strength…They didn’t just send stealth bombers but also aircraft. It was a concentrated operation to bring bombers to the targets and go back safely. Iran and China have built a powerful air defence system. The IRGC was resistant of manufacturing just in Iran. The production rates were low. The question now is will China will replenish Iranian stocks for the current war," said Cooper.

On Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Qatar strikes

Iran simultaneously fired ballistic missiles to Israel, Bahrain, UAE, Qatar in retaliation to the US and Israel’s joint attack near the offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“Iran has multiple solutions. One of these will depend on the damage US airpower will cause. Last year, the Israelis couldn’t cause much damage for decisive victory. They couldn’t reach further than the outskirts. So Iranians were free to move them to Tehran," he said.

“The US airforce will help them reach central Iran. The US intelligence is playing an even more important role…Americans are offering a different capability to Israel. In turn, Iranians have 2,000 ballistic missiles, but they have short-range missiles to strike US bases in UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar. Iranians can go all out or fire 15-20 missiles and wait for simmer effect like last year. US forces have exhausted production worth of 2 years in defending Israel," said Cooper.

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