- 28 October 2008
- 1 Comments
- Diplomacy, Events in Iran, Persian Gulf, US-Iran War
Iran has announced the opening of a new naval base just east of the Persian Gulf, strategically located near the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil chokepoint. The Iranian naval chief, Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, has said that this move was intended to “enable Iran to block the entry of an enemy into the Gulf.” Iran is now and has historically threatened to close the strait in the event of an attack by foreign powers.
These new developments come after biting remarks by an official in the Europe/US department in the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Wahid Karimi. He said that due to the increasing threats of an attack on Tehran by either the US or Israel, Iran should attack London as a preemptive measure. “The most appropriate means of deterrence that Iran has, in addition to a retaliatory operation in the [Gulf] region, is to take action against London,” said Karimi.