With the Gulf countries and India
Iran forms a new naval alliance

03/06/2023 14:22

The regime in Tehran is working to expand its military might with new allies. This seems to work in the sea. The country announced a naval alliance in which several Gulf states and India are said to be involved.

Iran has announced a new naval alliance in the Gulf. According to information from Tehran, the new cooperation members should be Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Qatar, Iraq and India.

Initially there was no confirmation of a new alliance from each country. The announcement follows the recent rapprochement between former rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia, which experts say is driving major strategic shifts in the region.

“Soon we will witness our region being liberated from rogue forces. The people of the region will play a dominant role in security by deploying their own army,” Iranian Navy Commander Shahram Irani said, Fars news agency reported.

With Russia and China

After naval exercises with Russia and China in March, Islamic Republic officials have announced that they will include other countries in an alliance. In the face of international sanctions, Iran has expanded its partnerships with Russia and China. The US, Iran’s arch-enemy, also has a naval presence in the Gulf with the US Fifth Fleet. Its headquarters are in the island nation of Bahrain. From there, the US Navy patrols the region’s waters and regularly checks ships in international waters, for example, for possible arms shipments.

Meanwhile, the UAE announced its withdrawal from the international naval partnership with the US. Emirates justifies the move with an evaluation of the cooperation between their partners. “Consequently, the UAE withdrew its participation in the Combined Navy two months ago,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday. There used to always be military incidents in the Gulf. This sparked some violent political tensions. In particular, the Strait of Hormuz, a strait about 55 kilometers wide between Iran and Oman, is considered one of the most important shipping routes for world oil exports.