Saturday, December 24, 2011 – Iranian Navy officials announced to start 10-day war games on Saturday, which will cover a span of about 2,000 square kilometers from the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Aden.
While speaking during a press conference Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said, the maneuver, entitled Velayat-90, differs from previous ones in terms of the vastness of the area of action and military equipment and tactics that would be employed.
Sayyari further added, Military war games will be staged in a large area from the east side of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf of Oman to the northern Indian Ocean, he said, adding that in terms of intelligence, the maneuver will cover a vast area stretching from the northern Indian Ocean to the Gulf of Aden.
He also said, the war games will be conducted in the vicinity of Oman, Yemen, Pakistan, India, and the northern Somalia and based on international regulations.
The main purpose of the maneuvers according to Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari is to will display the prowess of the country’s armed forces as well as the Navy’s defensive and deterrent power and its capability to provide security for vessels in the open seas.
He also added, war games will also convey the message of “peace and friendship” to regional countries.
In response to an enquiry to close the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategically important chokepoints which accounts for about 30% of the world’s seaborne oil shipments Sayyari said that the strait is under the control of the Navy and no decision has been made in this regard yet.
This comes as Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast on December 14 said that Iran’s threat of closing the Strait of Hormuz is a response to the United States’ threats against the Islamic Republic.


