Brigadier General Qadir Nezami said Iran has begun to stage joint maneuvers with other countries.
“For the first time after the Islamic Revolution, we will hold a trilateral joint naval war game with Russia and China as two major powers in the north of the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Oman,” said General Nezami, the director for international affairs and defence diplomacy of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces.
“Many political and military estimates and analyses will give much weight to these events and will take them into account in strategic developments,” he said.
He said the area where the maneuvers are to be held lies in international waters.
“We are not planning to stage the war game in the Persian Gulf,” he noted.
“Military exercises have different objectives, which, on many occasions, include an exchange of tactical and military experiences,” he said.
“Sometimes, these war games have political objectives and show a kind of convergence among participants,” he said.
The top general said Iran has given fresh impetus to its defence diplomacy over the past couple of years, including the establishment of joint defense commissions with 12 countries.