NOURNEWS- Iranian Armed Forces Spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi said there is no need for the US Armed Forces to maintain the security of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz given that Tehran and the regional states are cooperating to guarantee the stability of the strategic waterway.
Brig. Gen. Shekarchiin made the remarks on Saturday in response to the US plan to put guards on commercial ships going through the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
“What the security of the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean has to do with America? What are you (US forces) doing here?” the senior commander said.
"All the countries in the region are capable of establishing security in these waters," he added.
Washington announced recently that it is planning to deploy its Marines, along with jet fighters and warships, in yet another act of intrusion into the Persian Gulf and far from their borders.
In reaction to the US move, Shekarchi said it is the US policy to blame third countries for insecurity and instability in the region and use it as a pretext to boost its military presence in regional waters.
The Iranian commander lashed out at the US for looting the Muslim nations' resources to manufacture weapons and selling those arms back to the regional countries.
He stressed the weapons manufactured by the US and Europe are now used against civilians in Gaza and Yemen, but they accuse Iran of interfering in the regional countries' affairs.
Iran has repeatedly condemned the US for “warmongering” and escalating tensions with its regular military deployments in West Asia.
In recent months, Iranian naval forces have impounded several ships off the country’s Southern coast for their breaches of shipping safety law, with the US claiming that the moves are “illegal” and “endanger” shipping safety.
Tehran dismisses the claims as baseless, stressing the vessel seizures are in fact meant to consolidate the maritime law.
Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Navy Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri has recently stated that his forces have so far seized 35 foreign vessels due to the violation of maritime law.
“Iran does not seize ships for no reason. For years, the Persian Gulf has become a safe route, and the Strait of Hormuz is under our surveillance,” he said in mid-May.
Iran says the US is the primary source of insecurity in West Asia and Washington remains responsible for the instability in the region as long as its wrong and crisis-making policies are not rectified. Tehran has repeatedly stressed that the responsibility to ensure the Persian Gulf security and stability lies with the regional countries without a need for foreign naval forces.
They call on Washington to leave the area as soon as possible “so that this sensitive region becomes safer". Tehran has cautioned that the presence of foreign naval vessels in the Persian Gulf poses a serious threat to its ecosystem and marine life.
Iranian military officials say the Iranian Army and the IRGC Navies have brought stability and safety to the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. The Iranian naval forces have succeeded in escorting and protecting almost 5,000 oil tankers and commercial ships in international waters since 2008, according to Iranian officials.
They have declared the Iranian naval forces' full preparedness to fight off any plot of enemies against Tehran at its birth, stressing that the country's armed forces will teach a painful lesson to foes in case they launch any act of aggression against the country.
Tehran has cautioned that any plan aimed at increasing US presence in the Middle East will only foment insecurity and instability and spread terrorism, asking the neighboring countries to be extremely vigilant about any US-Israeli plan that clearly aims to disturb the stability and order of the region.
Iranian officials have underlined the necessity for the settlement of the crises and problems in the region through collective cooperation among the regional states, and underscored that the presence of foreigners is harmful.
NOURNEWS