As Iran held a major, unprecedented naval drill with Russia and China in the northern part of the Indian Ocean on Saturday, a top Iranian navy official said the three countries sought to establish “full security of shipping lines” in the region.
Iranian flotilla chief, Rear Admiral Gholamreza Tahani, added that the nations were cooperating to counter “common maritime threats,” according to Tehran’s Fars news agency.
Iranian state TV reported Friday that the four-day exercise, launched from the southeastern port city of Chahbahar in the Gulf of Oman and near the border with Pakistan, is aimed at boosting security of the region’s waterways.
The joint exercise, the first of its kind, comes at a time of heightened tensions since the United States withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran in May last year, and with the Islamic Republic gradually breaching elements of the agreement.
Tehran has been seeking to step up military cooperation with Beijing and Moscow amid unprecedented economic sanctions from Washington. Visits to Iran by Russian and Chinese naval representatives have also increased in recent years. READ MORE
