[IsraelTimes] Iranian news agency says new support vessel will ensure the security of trade routes, help maintain Tehran’s ’authority’ over waters in area
Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is building a massive new support ship near the strategic Strait of Hormuz as it tries to expand its naval presence in waters vital to international energy supplies and beyond, satellite photos obtained by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named show. The construction of the Shahid Mahdavi provides the Guard a large, floating base from which to run the small fast boats thon the lamly make up its fleet designed to counter the US Navy and other allied forces in the region.
Its arrival, however, comes after a series of setbacks for both the Guard and Iran’s regular navy, including the loss of its largest warship less than a year earlier. As negotiations over Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers also founder, further confrontations at sea between Tehran and the West also remain a risk. |