Imam Khamenei Orders Navy to Focus on Malacca, Bab el-Mandeb, Hormuz Straits

The Iranian Navy has concentrated its missions on the strategic straits of Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb and Malacca after a relevant order by The Leader of the Islamic Ummah and Oppressed People Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei, Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said on Monday.

“The golden triangle of Malacca, Bab el-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz is an important triangle and is the Navy’s point of concentration as recommended by the Leader,” Sayyari said, addressing Navy cadets in Iran’s Southern port city of Bandar Imam Khomeini.

Underlining the strategic and vital importance of the three waterways for Iran, the Admiral explained that 93% of Iran’s exports and imports pass through these sea routes.

Earlier this month, the Iranian Navy dispatched its 25th flotilla of warships to the Gulf of Aden and the high seas to protect the country’s cargo ships and oil tankers against pirates.

The 25th fleet of warships, comprised of Alborz missile warship and Larak logistic ship, left the Army’s first naval zone for a mission in the high seas after the 24th flotilla returned home.

The Navy’s 24th fleet of warships docked in Southern Iran after successfully conducting a 72-day mission in international waters to provide maritime security in the region.

The Iranian flotilla comprised of Khark chopper carrier and Sabalan destroyer and was on a mission to the Pacific Ocean since late January.

Presence in the Indian and Pacific oceans and the China Sea, patrolling Southeast Asia’s strategic Strait of Malacca, crossing the Equator, docking at China’s port city of Zhangjiagang port and identifying 370 surface and subsurface vessel units were among the important tasks carried out by the fleet.

Last month, the Iranian warships docked in Zhangjiagang after a 13,000-kilometer voyage in 40 days as part of their mission to convey Iran’s message of peace and friendship to the East Asian states.

The Iranian commanders, however, underlined that the Iranian Navy’s activities and its combat capabilities pose no threat to any country in the region as they just carry a message of peace and friendship for nations.

The Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008, when Somali raiders hijacked the Iranian-chartered cargo ship, MV Delight, off the coast of Yemen.

According to UN Security Council resolutions, different countries can send their warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia against the pirates and even with prior notice to Somali government enter the territorial waters of that country in pursuit of Somali sea pirates.