Iran’s Sahand Destroyer Nearing Completion: Commander
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s Navy is developing new destroyers, including “Sahand” which is 90 percent complete, Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Sayyari said the manufacturing of new military destroyers in Iran has witnessed substantial progress, and the highest degree of development relates to Sahand.
Sahand is the third destroyer produced as part of the Mowj (Wave) project in Iran. Its predecessors, Jamaran and Damavand, are currently in service and employed in naval missions in the international waters.
Elsewhere in his comments, Rear Admiral Sayyari pointed to the Navy’s anti-piracy missions in the high seas, saying the Iranian forces have escorted 2,500 vessels over the past 7 years, allowing them to escape unharmed when faced with pirates.
The commander noted that Iran’s Navy is not after arresting the pirates, but only aims to shoo them out of the country’s maritime borders.
Since November 2008, the Iranian navy has conducted anti-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden and Bab el-Mandeb strait to protect the country's vessels against pirate attacks.
Under the terms of several UN Security Council resolutions, nations can deploy warships to the Gulf of Aden and coastal waters of Somalia to protect their vessels against pirates and, after giving notice to Somali government, enter Somali territorial waters in pursuit of the pirates.
