Iranian Army Holds Military Exercise Over an Area of Two Million Square Kilometers

Abdulrahim Mousavi, the deputy commander of the Iranian Army, announced the holding of a military exercise from December 25 to December 30, covering an area of 'approximately 2 million and 200 thousand square kilometers' and stated that counter-terrorism would also be practiced during this exercise. Regarding the relationship between the Army and the Revolutionary Guard, he said: 'Of course, we sometimes have hidden competitions with each other, which are daily, but both the Revolutionary Guard and the Army operate for one ideal, which is the ideal of the Islamic Revolution, under one flag and one command, which is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.' According to Fars News Agency, Abdulrahim Mousavi, on Thursday, December 18, at a press conference attended by several senior Army commanders, announced the name of the exercise as 'Great Exercise of Muhammad the Messenger of God' and its slogan as 'Demonstration of Power and Sustainable Peace and Friendship in the Shade of Islamic and Regional Unity.' According to Mr. Mousavi, on the last day of this exercise, a 'grand parade of surface and subsurface units' will be held, with the area in the sea extending from the northern Indian Ocean to the eastern Strait of Hormuz. The deputy commander of the Iranian Army also stated that new weapons and tactics would be tested and evaluated during this exercise. The announcement of this exercise comes less than 20 days after Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, urged the Iranian armed forces to continuously increase their readiness without considering what he called 'political calculations.' 'We announce that foreigners should leave the region,' said Habibollah Sayyari, commander of the Navy of the Army, also at this press conference, stating that 'surface-to-surface, shore-to-sea, ground-to-air, and air-to-surface missiles' would be tested during this exercise. He added: 'We have designated an area as a shooting zone where torpedoes and missiles will be fired, and we announce that foreigners should leave the region.' The Navy commander emphasized that this action is in accordance with international law, stating: 'Whoever does not leave the region will bear the consequences.' According to Mr. Sayyari, no foreign observers have been invited to attend this exercise. Hussein Chitforoush, spokesman for the Air Force of the Army, also announced that 'new and various missiles' would be tested during this exercise, without specifying the types of these missiles. The commander of the Iranian Army's Air Defense Headquarters stated that all 'extraterritorial flights' would be monitored during the exercise. According to Tasnim News Agency, Farzad Ismaili added: 'In all Army exercises, all reconnaissance, surveillance, and fighter aircraft have been kept away from the exercise area, and the same will happen in next week's exercise.' The holding of the Iranian Army's exercise comes at a time when, in recent months, the largest mine-clearing exercise by the U.S. and its allies has been conducted in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman, the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, and part of the Indian Ocean over an area of 8.5 million square kilometers. Last month, coinciding with nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 countries, media affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard reported multiple instances of Iran's missile capabilities for 'attacking Israel' and also published reports on missiles that the Islamic Republic has provided to armed groups in Palestine and Lebanon.