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Iran, China and Russia began joint military exercises on Friday December 27 in the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Oman. These maneuvers show Iran's refusal to see foreign powers, notably the United States, settle in the region.
With these four days of military exercises carried out jointly with Russia and China, the Iranian Navy wanted to " show that Iran cannot be isolated ". Indeed, these joint maneuvers are a first and are " a fairly strong signal ", especially for their geographic position.
“ It never happened. And these maneuvers take place at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz which itself leads to the Persian Gulf, therefore the large oil production area from which roughly 30% of world production goes , "analyzes François Nicoullaud, international policy analyst and former French ambassador to Iran.
Increased tensions
These maneuvers come against a backdrop of increased tensions in the Gulf since Washington's withdrawal in May 2018 from the Iranian nuclear agreement and the reinstatement of American sanctions that are suffocating the economy of the Islamic Republic.
They " come at a time when the United States itself is trying to tighten its control over the Persian Gulf following various incidents. They tried to build a coalition of different countries. For the moment, there are four or five countries, but which would in fact be responsible for police in the Persian Gulf, "said the expert.
A message sent to Washington
This tripartite operation shows the will of Iran, which relaunched its nuclear program in response to American sanctions, not to let anyone take a seat in the Persian Gulf. " Iran does not like very much, because it considers that the Persian Gulf is at home and there is no reason to see foreign powers settle there ", continues François Nicoullaud.
These maneuvers are the sign of the creation of a new triangle of maritime power, claims Iranian state television. " Iran has managed to mount these maneuvers with two countries (...) and therefore indeed these maneuvers still have a very strong symbolic value ," concludes the ex-ambassador.
(With AFP)