Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said here Monday evening showing will and determination of armed forces and Iranian nation, comprehensive defense, and sending peace message to region are among features of Naval War Game Velayat 90, IRNA reported.
According to the IRNA, Rear Admiral Sayyari who was speaking on Islamic Republic of Iran News Network (IRINN) TV live Monday night on the 3rd night of the naval war game pointing out that in order to maintain the combat readiness of the forces there is one war game annually, added, "The Velayat (Vicegerency) 90 Naval War Game is among the Islamic Republic of Iran's greatest war games in the region in terms of taking advantage of facilities and warfare, and the vastness of the war game's operation area."
He added, "In determining our targets in accordance with the probable threats against us in the sea, we must estimate our might, and transfer the experience of the veterans to the other forces in our training programs."
Emir Rear Admiral Sayyari referred to the last year IRI Navy war game which was held in the Indian Ocean, in which the might displayed by the navy was less compared to that of the navy's power in Velayat 90 Naval War Game, arguing, "In Valayat 90 Naval War Game we had operations by a single warship, by two warships, and in the presence of floating units accompanied by scuba divers and logistical land to sea missiles, as well as drone bombers."
Pointing out that the vastness of the operation's area is the most important feature of this war game, the IRI Navy commander added, "The operation area of this war game is up to 20-degree latitude and in terms of identifying the floating objects it is up to the 10-degree latitude."
He added, "In the course of this war game a Saudi oil tanker vessel which was attacked by a number of boats had asked for assistance and floating units of Iran had rushed to assistance it."
Sayyari added, "In Velayat 90 naval War Game the shared practices of the surface floating objects and the flying objects, as well as the operations by sub-surface units, in addition to the remaining units, we pursued by expansion of forces in pre-determined regions."
Pointing out that any move made in the sea is a test, he said, "This war game is a training course for the entire participating personnel and in each of the practices in addition to being a part of the general operation's scheme, we managed to put to use various facilities and warfare successfully and achieved the pre-determined objectives."
Emir Rear Admiral Sayyari added, "In continuation of this war game the insider forces by penetration in the supposedly enemy forces restricted their movements in their own region, and taking advantage of new war tactics and modern warfare they completed the various phases of this stage."
He pointed out that Iran's interests include energy resources, commerce, and particularly exports and imports, and especially oil, which is of great importance for different countries, including Iran, and as a naval force, we must shoulder the mission of safeguarding the regional peace and stability.
Commander Sayyari added, "The seas belong to the entire nations and we must have a mighty presence in them. The path is quite bright for us and we will have a presence at the free waters, as well."
Deputy Commander of the IRI Navy Admiral Seyyed Mahmoud Mousavi, too, who is the commander of this navel war game, said in a live interview with the IRINN, "In this navel war game, special naval operations, scuba diving and various coast to sea and sea to coast terminals, as well as stationing of facilities and special and general sessions for defined scenarios for the operating forces were among the justified objectives."
Pointing out that training how to work with electronic facilities and encountering units of supposed enemy in the sea and at shallow depths are among the other objectives of this war game, he added, "In this war game the harmony between the shared practices of the floating units and the flying units, as well as the shared operations of the surface floating units and the sub-surface floating units and scuba divers and repairs and maintenance at sea and on the coasts were all preformed successfully."
He meanwhile informed about the usage and testing of a new sea to sea missile at the operation field and full destruction of the target aimed at by it in the operation, adding, "The entire pre-determined objectives of this war game have been achieved thus far."
The preliminary stage of the 10-day naval war game, titled Velayat-90, was completed on Monday, and Iranian warships, submarines, and other naval vessels spread out across the theaters of operations, which cover a wide area from the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Aden.
The deployment of naval units was carried out as naval vessels, submarines, and helicopters practiced military tactics in preparation for the main stage of the war games, Rear Admiral Mahmoud Mousavi, the spokesman of the maneuvers, told IRNA on Monday.
He also said that during the preliminary stage of the war games, submarines of the Tareq Class successfully fired electrically propelled torpedoes for the first time.
The war games, which started on Saturday, are said to differ from previous ones in terms of the vastness of the area of action and the military equipment and tactics that are being employed.
It has been announced that submarines of the Ghadir Class and other classes, warships, missile-firing destroyers, coast-to-sea missile systems, drones, and electronic warfare equipment will be tested during the exercises.
The commander of the Iranian Navy, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, said on December 22 that the war games would 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, adding that in terms of intelligence, the maneuvers would cover a vast area stretching from the northern Indian Ocean to the Gulf of Aden.
Sayyari also said that the war games would be conducted in the vicinity of Oman, Yemen, Pakistan, India, and northern Somalia and would be conducted in accordance with international regulations.
The maneuvers will display the prowess of Iran's armed forces as well as the Navy's defensive and deterrent power and its capability to provide security for vessels sailing on the open seas, he explained.
Naval units warn away foreign chopper
Rear Admiral Mousavi also announced that Iranian naval units warned away a foreign helicopter that had entered one of the theaters of the war games on Sunday.
"The previous day, we saw a helicopter of an extra-regional country enter our units' area of operation, and the helicopter was forced to leave the area after receiving repeated warning signals," he said.