Retired Egyptian Army General Lauds Iran's Naval Presence in Red Sea

FNA- Iran's naval presence in the Red Sea will be in the interest of the Muslim and regional countries, a retired Egyptian Army General stressed on Wednesday.

Speaking to FNA, Talat Muslim dismissed the negative propaganda campaign waged by a number of western countries against the deployment of Iranian warships and submarines in the Red Sea, and stated, "Iran's military presence in the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea is not against the interests of the Islamic and Arab world, rather it will serve the interests of the regional states."

Informed sources told FNA on Tuesday that the Iranian Navy has deployed its submarines in far seas as part of its plan for widening its naval presence in international waters and oceans.

The sources said that the submarines were deployed in international waters together with the dispatch of 14th fleet of warships sent by Iran to the high seas.

The source also mentioned that the Iranian fleet is now in the Red Sea as part of its naval mission.

Talat Muslim said that such a military presence supports the Islamic countries, specially those which have strategic ties with Iran.

He further underlined that Iran's naval deployment in the Mediterranean Sea can also be interpreted as a move to support Damascus.

In April, Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy for Coordination General Kamran Farhang-Javid told FNA that the Iranian Navy will continue extraterritorial missions, including dispatch of warships to the Mediterranean Sea, in future.

In February, two Iranian military vessels, Khark and Alvand, docked in Syria for training amid attempts by the United States and Israel to brand the mission as a cause for concern.

The 1,500-ton patrol frigate Alvand is armed with torpedoes and anti-ship missiles, while the larger 33,000-ton supply vessel Khark has 250 crewmembers and can carry three helicopters