‘No one can keep Iran out of intl. waters’

Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari says as a peaceful country, Iran has the undeniable right to be present in international waters.

“Based on international law, presence in international waters is the indisputable right of Iran and no country can deprive it of this right,” Sayyari said in a ceremony held to mark the first international mission of Iran’s domestically-built Jamaran destroyer on Sunday.

He dismissed Western claims about Iran’s inability to send a fleet to the Atlantic Ocean, stressing the Iranian Army is determined to be present in all international waters based on the guidelines of the Leader of Islamic Ummah and Oppressed People Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei, Mehr news agency reported.

The Iranian commander emphasized that the Islamic Republic will not carry out an act of aggression against any country and vowed to resist the enemies.

Iran’s 16th fleet of warships, which include domestically-built Jamaran destroyer and the Bandar Abbas frigate, left for the Gulf of Aden on Sunday in line with efforts to provide security for Iranian trade vessels in the pirate-infested area.

The Iranian Navy launched the Jamaran destroyer in the waters of the Persian Gulf in February, 2010.

The 1,420-ton destroyer is equipped with modern radars and electronic warfare capabilities. It has a top speed of up to 30 knots and has a helipad. It also features highly advanced anti-aircraft, anti-surface and anti-subsurface systems. The vessel has also been equipped with torpedoes and naval cannons.

On July 18, Sayyari announced the Army’s plans to send a fleet to the Atlantic Ocean after its successful presence in international waters.

“Presence in the Mediterranean Sea, the Suez Canal, south of the Indian Ocean and in international waters is at the top of the Navy’s agenda,” he stated, explaining that Iranian warships would be equipped with Nour long-range anti-ship cruise missiles.

In February, two Iranian Navy ships, Khark and Alvand, passed through the Suez Canal, a strategic international shipping route in Egypt, for the first time since the 1979 victory of the Islamic Revolution.

Early in July, Iran’s Yunes submarine, sailing alongside the Iranian Navy 14th fleet warships, returned home following an almost two-month-long mission in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

The deployment of Iranian military submarine in the Red Sea was the first such operation by the country’s navy in far-off waters.

Rampant piracy off the Indian Ocean coast of Somalia has made the waters among the most perilous in terms of pirate activities. Iran has also deployed warships in the Red Sea to combat Somali pirates.