Iran, China, Russia Launch 3-Day Joint Naval Drill in Indian Ocean

The navies of Iran, China, and Russia launched a three-day joint maritime drill on Friday in the northern Indian Ocean designed to signal a “common future” between the three nations, Iranian Rear Admiral Mostafa Tajoldini told Iranian state television.

The naval drills will take place across a 6,600-square-mile stretch of the northern Indian Ocean including the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, according to reports this week by Iranian state media.

“The purpose of this drill is to strengthen security and its foundations in the region, and to expand multilateral cooperation between the three countries to jointly support world peace, maritime security and create a maritime community with a common future,” Tajoldini told Iranian state TV on January 21 hours after the exercises began.

“Strengthening the security of international maritime trade, combating piracy and maritime terrorism, exchanging intelligence in the field of maritime rescue missions, and exchanging operational and tactical experience are among the objectives of the 2022 Marine Security Belt exercise,” Iranian state-run news outlet Press TV reported on January 21, referring to the joint military drill by its official name.

The navies simulated scenarios in the early morning hours of January 21 including “a pirate seizure of two vessels,” Tajoldini told the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

“Naval and aerial units of the three countries liberated two merchant ships hijacked by pirat... (Read more)

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