Iran Plans to Sends 43rd Navy Flotilla to Africa, Atlantic

“The Iranian Navy’s 43rd flotilla will embark on a journey to South Africa, Tanzania and the Atlantic Ocean in case of clement weather conditions,” Admiral Sayyari told FNA in the Northern city of Rasht on Wednesday.

The flotilla of warships will start its voyage after the 42nd fleet of the Iranian Navy returns home.

The Iranian Navy commander reiterated that as per international laws the Iranian Navy is allowed to sail through and deploy in international waters, and said, “The 43rd flotilla will be dispatched to protect trade ships and oil tankers from the threat of the pirates in the Gulf of Aden, Bab al-Mandab and the Red Sea” as its main mission.

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.

The Gulf of Aden – which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea – is an important energy corridor, particularly because Persian Gulf oil is shipped to the West via the Suez Canal.