TEHRAN – Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri said Friday there is no need for trans-regional forces in the Persian Gulf, saying Iran and neighboring countries are cooperating to guarantee the security of the strategic waterway.
Rear Admiral Tangsiri said that The Persian Gulf belongs to the countries of this region and they can establish its security themselves.
The IRGC Navy commander said the Islamic Republic has always welcomed and continues to welcome the strategic principle of the alliance and community of the countries of the Persian Gulf. He said Iran’s policy has always been de-escalation and has always proven this in practice.
He made the remarks in the Nazeaat region, a collection of four islands, Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Siri in the Persian Gulf near the Strait of Hormuz.
These islands are considered as the defense fortress of the Strait of Hormuz.
Separately, Iranian Navy chief Rear Admiral Shahram Irani touched on the homegrown Dena destroyer, saying it had raised the flag of the Islamic Republic’s military might in the world in its round-the-globe voyage.
“All domestic capacities were used to carry out the great mission of the Dena destroyer, and the flag of the system, the revolution and the Islamic Republic was raised on the world stage,” Irani said before Friday prayer sermons in Mashhad.
Dena’s successful mission, he added, was a gift by Iranian youth to the people of the region.
“It is a source of honor for the Islamic Republic that the security and safety of navigation in the depth of international waters and the geopolitical and strategic depth of the system in the sea borders were expanded thousands of kilometers.”
The navy chief said the successful mission caught off the enemies and conveyed the Iranian people’s message that “sanctions, threats, and conspiracies will never prevent us from moving forward”.
Iranian Army’s 86th flotilla comprising Dena, a warship equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes, and naval cannons, and Makran, a major base ship, returned home last month, after completing a voyage around the world which marked the first in the country’s history.