Iranian Commander: Navy to Launch Homegrown Destroyer, Submarine Soon
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said new domestically-made military hardware, including Sahand destroyer and Fateh submarine, will join the Navy’s fleet by the end of the current Iranian year (ends on March 20, 2017).
In a speech on Monday night, Rear Admiral Sayyari praised the Navy’s self-sufficiency in manufacturing state-of-the-art military equipment, saying that as part of the Mowj (Wave) project, Jamaran and Damavand destroyers are now in service and Sahand destroyer will join the Navy’s fleet in coming months.
He added that Fateh semi-heavy submarine is also planned to join the fleet by the end of the current Iranian year.
Iranian military experts and technicians have in recent years made great headways in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient in the arms sphere.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Sayyari highlighted the Navy’s presence in international waters, saying that up to now, more than 3,000 ships have been escorted by the Navy’s fleets in the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and Bab el-Mandeb.
In recent years, Iran’s naval forces have increased their presence in international waters to secure naval routes and protect merchant vessels and oil tankers against pirates.
In line with international efforts to combat piracy, the Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008 to safeguard the vessels involved in maritime trade, especially the ships and oil tankers owned or leased by Iran.