Naval Wargames Soon
TEHRAN (FNA)- The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) will soon stage its most massive naval exercises in Iran’s Southern waters in the near future, Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi announced.
“The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps plans to conduct its greatest naval wargames in the same region in the near future,” Vahidi said Wednesday as he was speaking to reporters about the recent exercises of the Iranian Army’s naval force in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman which ended earlier this week.
“Iran is the most important power in the region, playing a significant role in protecting the security of the area.”
Iran wrapped up its 10-day naval drills in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman on Tuesday.
Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari described the wargames as “successful“.
Speaking after the drill, Vahidi said the country has been successful in its pursuit of maintaining the security of the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil route. An estimated 40 percent of the world’s oil supply passes through the waterway.
Iran’s naval power has even been acknowledged by foes. In a Sep. 11, 2008 report, the Washington Institute for the Near East Policy also said that in the two decades since the Iraqi imposed war on Iran, the Islamic Republic has excelled in naval capabilities and is able to wage unique asymmetric warfare against larger naval forces.
According to the report, Iran’s Navy has been transformed into a highly motivated, well-equipped, and well-financed force and is effectively in control of the world’s oil lifeline, the Strait of Hormuz.
The study says that if Washington takes military action against the Islamic Republic, the scale of Iran’s response would likely be proportional to the scale of the damage inflicted on Iranian assets.
The Islamic Republic’s top military officials have repeatedly warned that in case of an attack by either the US or Israel, the country would target 32 American bases in the Middle East and close the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
An estimated 40 percent of the world’s oil supply passes through the waterway.
A recent study by a fellow at Harvard’s Olin Institute for Strategic Studies, Caitlin Talmadge, warned that Iran could use mines as well as missiles to block the strait, and that “it could take many weeks, even months, to restore the full flow of commerce, and more time still for the oil markets to be convinced that stability had returned“.
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Source: http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9007270478
For comment and analysis see:
- Iran to hold new naval exercises in Strait of Hormuz
- Iran could be bluffing in the strait of Hormuz – but can US risk calling it?
- MoD Reviewing Security Status
