“Presence of transregional forces does not preserve and enhance regional security, but causes threat and insecurity,” he said on Wednesday while addressing a virtual conference dubbed ‘Persian Gulf is our home’ hosted by Supreme National Defense University.
Ghalibaf highlighted that the foreign troops’ presence disturbs economic opportunities in and out of the region.
“If we see a divide today between south and north of the Persian Gulf, it is because of the presence of American forces. They have come to create different situations in the region so as to create trends and control them.”
Iran did not let US have any effect on the north of the Persian Gulf and “cut off its hand”, he continued, adding, “We hope that regional countries would cut America’s foot from the region.”
“America seeks to influence the region and global economy through a presence in the Persian Gulf region and to impose pressure even against European powers in this sensitive region that has a crucial role in world energy so as to maintain the security of the Zionist regime.”
He named convergence as a key factor for safeguarding the security of the Persian Gulf. “One of the reasons for the presence of foreign forces in the region is to prevent convergence [between regional states] and we should consciously oppose this policy and avoid any form of divergence because nations of the region are culturally very close and we are all Muslims. We should stop being stubborn; we should stand beside each other to prepare the region for progress.”
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