Iran to set up permanent base in Indian Ocean

Tehran, June 23 (IANS) Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) announced that it plans to set up a permanent base in the Indian Ocean in order to expand its presence in the international waters, Press TV reported.Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has tasked the IRGC with permanent presence in waters far away from the country, IRGC Navy Commander Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri said on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.Accordingly, the IRGC is planning to create a permanent base in the Indian Ocean by the end of March 2021, Tangsiri said.The IRGC commander said that "pirates and some foreign vessels had, in the past, created disturbances for the Iranian trawlers and dhows in the country's southern waters.""Through its powerful presence in the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean, the IRGC will no longer leave any room for such acts of infringement," he noted.
--IANS rt/