Joint maneuvers of the Navy of Iran, Russia and China started on Friday in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Oman.
“The message of these exercises is peace, friendship and stable security”, – said Iranian Navy spokesman Golamreza Tahani at the beginning of the joint trilateral exercise on state television.
According to him, the exercise will take place on an area of 17 thousand square kilometers.
The exercise is called “Maritime Security Belt”, – which, as reported by Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali, aims to develop measures to combat terrorism and maritime piracy, as well as to ensure regional security.
Iranian Armed Forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi said the exercise will last four days (December 27-30), during which participants will exchange experiences on rescue operations in case of incidents at sea.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stressed during his visit to Moscow that the exercise is not directed against other countries.
The maneuvers will take place against the backdrop of U.S. efforts to build a coalition to ensure water security near Iran and a series of incidents that have occurred in the Gulf-Hormuz Strait region this summer and have visibly escalated the situation there.
Two oil tankers, Front Altair and Kokuka Courageous, were attacked in the Gulf of Oman in mid-June, according to Arab and Iranian media reports. The United States and the United Kingdom blamed Iran for the attack, but did not provide concrete evidence. The head of the Iranian Foreign Ministry said that the accusations about Tehran’s involvement in the attacks on the tankers are groundless.
Wu Qian, an official representative of the Chinese Defense Ministry, pointed out that the exercise was not connected with the tense situation in the region.
The Pentagon told RIA Novosti that the U.S. will monitor the exercises of Russia, China and Iran.