Making the remarks on the sidelines of a meeting held on the occasion of April 30, the Persian Gulf Day, he said that "the Islamic Republic of Iran tolerates the presence of no colonizers or occupiers, neither on land or sea."
"As far as the Iranian Navy is present in the Persian Gulf, the presence of the American forces will not be without any costs," he added.
He recommended the US to pull out its forces from the region, saying that "we do believe that the era for US presence in the region has come to an end."
"The Persian Gulf belongs to regional countries and they can ensure its security by themselves," he added.
Iranian official shave called several times for foreign forces to leave the region and for regional states to get united for ensuring regional security.
Iran-US tensions in the Persian Gulf have escalated since April 15, when US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that 11 high-speed boats, belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), repeatedly came close to American military vessels in “dangerous and harassing approaches” in the Persian Gulf.
Reacting to the claim, Iranian Foreign Ministry announced on April 20 that “We principally consider foreigners and American presence in the region as provocative and illegal. This is our region and we have to ensure its security by carrying out patrols,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mousavi said on Monday in his weekly presser.
In a tweet on April 22, US President Trump announced that he has instructed the American navy to shoot down all and every Iranian gunboats in the Persian Gulf, in case they put a threat to US boats.
MNA/4911178