Iranian officials on Saturday announced a 10-day war games effort that will take place in international waters just beyond the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic oil transportation hub at the mouth of the Persian Gulf.
According to reports it’s likely that the exercise will bring Iranian ships into close proximity with U.S> Navy vessels who are already patrolling in the vicinity of the war games.
Speaking of his countries war games on State TV Navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari said the purpose was to show off the countries military prowess and to provide a glimpse into their defense capabilities. In his statement he revealed:
“To show off its might, the navy needs to be present in international waters. It’s necessary to demonstrate the navy’s defense capabilities,” state.”
During their maneuvers the country will implement submarines, surface-to-sea missile systems, missile-launching vessels, torpedoes and drones.
The war games come at a time when international pressure has continued to mount against Iran. The United States and various world leaders placed sanction on the Iran Central Bank several weeks ago, sanctions that caused the country to lose out on an electricity consumption agreement they had been working on with Poland for nearly 4 years. A quick $1 billion deal they made Russia was quickly turned down just after Russian officials were invited to finally join the World Trade Organization (WTO) after years of unsuccessful attempts.
The U.S. and its allies worry that Iran is building up a nuclear arsenal while officials in the country say their nuclear efforts are for peaceful purposes only.
Tehran meanwhile has threatened to seal off key waterways if the US or Israel make a move against the countries nuclear facilities.
In the meantime the war games were revealed months ago and the United States reached out to the country in an effort to form a “hotline” between Iranian and United States military personnel in order to defuse any “miscalculations” that could lead to unintentional conflicts.
Do you think an Iran/U.S. conflict is growing ever more closer as other allies have also begun to call for more action against the country?
