Iran's Army Conducts Two Military Exercises in Response to Regional Proxy Wars

The commander of the Iranian Army's Ground Forces announced that in response to the "proxy wars in the region" of the Middle East, the military will conduct two exercises in the west and east of the country as a first reaction to the presence of the Islamic State (ISIS) in neighboring countries. According to Tasnim News Agency, Ahmad-Reza Pourdastan stated on Saturday, September 14, that "today we are facing proxy wars in the region, with the main actors being Takfiri groups and ISIS." He emphasized that "ISIS is active in the eastern neighboring countries of Iran, and the first reaction of the Ground Forces is to hold military exercises in the west in October and in the east in November to thwart the enemy's tactics." ISIS forces are present in neighboring Iraq and Afghanistan. Pourdastan had previously stated in the Iranian parliament on June 3 that "Takfiri and terrorist forces" are near Iran's borders. He reported that last year, ISIS members had prepared ammunition depots and forces in Iran's border provinces to create chaos through terror and explosions upon their entry, but Iran has organized "five combat brigades to counter them," and Iranian ground and reconnaissance helicopter forces have gone "up to 40 kilometers into Iraqi territory." Meanwhile, some Iranian officials, including Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence, have repeatedly stated that ISIS has made significant efforts to operate and create insecurity in Iran, including in border areas. Besides the two exercises announced by Pourdastan, Iranian military commanders have reported additional exercises, and Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), stated on Tuesday, September 10, that the IRGC and the army will conduct 20 exercises by the end of the current year, including ground, naval, aerial, and security drills. These statements came less than two weeks after Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, announced a "large ballistic missile exercise" to be held soon. Additionally, on Saturday, the fifth exercise of the "Guardians of the Velayat" was conducted by the Air Force in the "general area of Isfahan." Second Lieutenant Pilot Masoud Roukhsh, the spokesperson for this exercise, mentioned that operations against chemical and microbiological attacks by the enemy and aerial combat with F-14 and MiG-29 aircraft were among the conducted operations. He reported that in this exercise, Sukhoi-24 fighter jets "with long operational range," F-4, F-5, MiG-29, F-14, refueling aircraft, and "various drones" along with transport and support aircraft like C-130 were present. The holding of these exercises comes as Iranian military commanders have emphasized that Iran's military programs will continue as before, referring to what they describe as "America's hostility towards the Islamic Republic" following the Vienna nuclear agreement. In contrast, Ashton Carter, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, stated on Friday, September 13, in a note in the "USA Today" that military options against Iran remain on the table, and if the need arises to use such options, they would be more effective under the influence of the nuclear agreement.