IRGC Commander warns of shifting nature of threats

Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) urged steady and up-to-date military preparedness in the face of threats, whose nature, he said, is changing continuously.

Addressing a group of IRGC personnel in Tehran on Monday, Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari cautioned against continuous changes in the nature of military threats in the contemporary world.

Such changes, he stressed, necessitate upgrading the country’s military readiness, organizational tactics, equipment, training and capabilities.

The commander also warned of the threats with non-military origins, known as soft threats.

“Apart from keeping the military preparedness updated, the soft threats should also be predicted, prevented and thwarted,” Major General Jafari stressed.

Since most threats against the Islamic Revolution are of the soft type, working on spiritual aspects – the major component of the IRGC’s power – is of great significance, he went on to say.

Soft war is a term used by Iranian officials to refer to the cultural invasion and soft intelligence tactics used by foreign countries deemed hostile.

Back in February 2014, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei called on the Iranian university students to gain a thorough understanding of the hegemonic system and its plots, and to gear up to confront the enemies in the soft war arena.

In a message, the Supreme Leader described the Iranian students as “the young officers of the soft war,” adding that they should “prepare themselves to the utmost” for confrontation in the soft warfare.