TEHRAN -- Iran’s top general has warned that the country deems growing military coordination between the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and the Israeli military as a direct threat to its national security.
Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Major General Muhammad Baqeri wrote in an online message that the “terrorist U.S. military is trying to compensate for the withdrawal of its aircraft carriers, helicopter carriers, and destroyers from the Persian Gulf and the Oman Sea by incorporating the “child-killing” Zionist military into CENTCOM.
“The meaning of this action is that, from our point of view, the spying – and even operational – facilities of the United States and its allies will be at the disposal of the occupying Zionist regime, and this will increase the threat to our beloved country,” Baqeri said.
Late last month, Zionist war minister Benny Gantz made an unprecedented visit to the headquarters of the U.S. Central Command in Florida, where he was received by CENTCOM Commander General Michael Kurilla.
During the visit, Gantz claimed that the occupying regime of Israel’s cooperation with CENTCOM and the countries of the region would be a “game changer” in confronting Iran. He said the Zionist regime and the U.S. “will continue to deepen cooperation” against Iran’s nuclear program, which he charged was aimed at obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The occupying regime’s military meanwhile held a joint exercise with U.S. forces in late July with the aim of “protecting Israel from ballistic threats,” according to a statement released by the Zionist foreign ministry on Monday.
“I welcome the new cooperation between CENTCOM and IDF forces,” Gantz said, according to the statement. He added that “combining forces” and “sharing knowledge” was among the objectives of the exercise.
The occupying regime of Israel moved from U.S. European Command to CENTCOM in September of last year with the aim of simplifying the cooperation with American occupation forces in the region. The move is also expected to expand military coordination between the Zionist regime and some Arab countries, which began to normalize their relations with the regime in Tel Aviv under U.S.-brokered agreements in late 2020.
In his message, Baqeri said the regional countries that host American forces have already received written warnings from Iran, which sees the U.S. presence in the region as a serious threat.
“In addition to written announcements, warnings, and conveyance of the message through the Foreign Ministry to countries hosting the U.S. army, we have declared and will declare our readiness and warnings through expanding our presence, including air and sea patrols, deepening our intelligence dominance, and conducting various naval, missile, and drone exercises,” he said.
The top Iranian general further said Iran’s friendly advice to neighboring countries is to uphold brotherly relations and cooperation to establish security in the region “by our own countries and not by relying on foreigners.”