Addressing the welcoming ceremony of the Navy’s 86th flotilla crew members on Sunday, Major General Mohammad Bagheri said that the Navy did great and impossible work and made the Iranian nation proud.
"Iran's big coastal port of Bandar Abbas witness this great honor and we can truly say that Bandar Abbas is the second capital of our country," Bagheri further said.
Maritime power is the most important factor for the authority of the country, he also said, hailing the domestically-manufactured Dena destroyer and Makran warship that carried out the Navy's mission despite sanctions and various pressures.
Saying that Iran will continue its presence in the oceans seriously, he added, "We do not need foreigners to secure the region."
Currently, the navy forces of the Iran Army and IRGC are responsible for protecting the security of the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman.
Elsewhere in his remarks, he said that the Americans must accept the fact that they lost the components they had to bully the world over time, and nations and countries are trying to decide for themselves the future of dignity.
'Iran established its naval might in oceans, high seas'
Commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy Rear Admiral Shahram Irani also said his force, through its deployment to the high seas and conclusion of the lengthy naval mission, has established and expanded its strategic depth, foresight in maritime prowess, and regional identity and influence.
Irani said Iranian marines, under Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Armed Forces Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, managed for the first time ever to employ modern technologies and know-how to convey the message of peace and friendship.
The naval forces onboard Dena and Makran showed up on the high seas to declare that the Islamic Republic is impervious to isolation and sanctions, and it continues to tread the path of sustainable development through the promotion of interactions with world nations, the navy chief added.
Irani also said that Iranian marines pulled off a scientific, political and cultural achievement.
He argued that the great sailing mission of the Iranian Navy’s 86th flotilla also confirmed that the US-led liberal world order has been replaced by a multi-polar world order, with new alliances being formed and emerging powers beginning to display their might.
“Iran, with the discourse of resistance and mottos of peace and friendship, is passing through this transition period and properly placing itself in the new order. This is a sign of the waning power and hegemony of the US,” he remarked.
Iranian Army’s Navy 86th flotilla, which has successfully completed its historic circumnavigation of the world for the first time in the country’s history, has ended its sail after docking at the southern port of Bandar Abbas.
The 86th flotilla comprises Dena, a warship equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes, and naval cannons, and Makran, a floating military base that can carry five helicopters and is employed for providing logistical support for combat warships.
It set sail from Iran’s southern port city of Bandar Abbas on September 20 last year for a global voyage that took it to the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans.
The mission was aimed at expanding Iran’s naval presence in international waters.
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