Iran

Islamic Republic Iran will maintain international naval presence: Cmdr.

Iran’s Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari says the country’s naval forces plan to maintain their presence in international waters as one of their strategic objectives.

Iran’s Navy dispatched fleets of warships to the Indian Ocean, Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Gulf of Aden, Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea during the last Iranian calendar year (ended on March 19, 2012), Sayyari told IRNA on Sunday.

“We will safeguard the country’s interests through naval presence in the international waters,” he added.

“Iran’s Navy is a strategic force and must be present in the international waters but this does not mean that the country plans to violate water resources and maritime border interests of other countries,” he pointed out.

Sayyari said Iran’s Navy has necessary equipment to maintain presence in international waters.

Iran’s Navy has been multiplying its naval presence in the international waters since last year, deploying vessels to the Indian Ocean and dispatching two ships via the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean for the first time in February 2011.

In addition, in line with the international efforts to combat piracy, the Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008 to safeguard the vessels involved in maritime trade, especially the ships and oil tankers owned or leased by Iran.

The Islamic Republic has repeatedly asserted that its overseas naval presence is meant to convey a message of peace and friendship to regional countries.

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