The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy Commander, Admiral Alireza Tangsiri, slammed on Monday the presence of US aircraft carriers and military ships in the Arabian Gulf, saying that his forces now possess surface-to-surface and subsurface anti-warship missiles with a range as high as 700 kilometers.
"Now we have a variety of surface and sub-surface missiles with a range of 700 kilometers which have been produced by domestic military experts,” the semi-official Tasnim news agency quoted the Iranian commander as saying.
Tangsiri’s statement came following the recent confrontation between IRGC and US forces in the Persian Gulf.
The US military said on Wednesday that 11 vessels from the IRGC navy had come dangerously close to US Navy and Coast Guard ships in the Gulf, calling the moves “dangerous and provocative.”
The IRGC Navy issued a statement on Sunday calling the US claims “fake” and likening them to some “Hollywood” scenarios.
"US forces violated international regulations and blocked the way of Iranian vessels but they were faced with our harsh response,” Tangsiri said, adding that no foreign vessel can trespass regional waters unless it is identified by the Iranian Army and IRGC forces.
“Our pride is that all of our military equipment is produced domestically, and we are not dependent on any other country,” he said.
The Commander said wherever the “Americans have been, there has been insecurity. We do not know of a place where American presence has brought security.”
Tangsiri warned that if anything is to happen to the nuclear warships in the Arabian Gulf, there will not be any living things or clean water in the region for at least 10 to 12 years.
Also on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said that foreign forces’ presence in the region is the source of insecurity, instability, and tension.
“We consider the presence of the foreign forces, especially forces of the United States, in the region a source of tension, instability, and insecurity. Their presence is illegal and illegitimate. This is our region and our armed forces must be able to patrol without hurdle,” Mousavi said in a press conference held through video conference.
