IRGC Claims: Conversion of Commercial Ship into Drone Carrier Warship

Simultaneously with the return of the U.S. maximum pressure policy against the Iranian government due to its nuclear policies and destabilizing actions in the region, the Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Thursday, February 7, the addition of the 'Shahid Baqeri Drone Carrier' to the Navy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the IRGC Navy, claimed that this vessel has 'the capability to carry several squadrons of unmanned aerial vehicles' and 'to carry and deploy various combat and support drones.' According to ISNA news agency, he also pointed out that the IRGC has created this ship after converting a commercial vessel, claiming that this vessel 'also has the capability to carry long-range missiles.' In this context, Mohammad Bagheri, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic, described this action as 'innovative' and claimed that the Iranian government will in the future 'establish naval bases in the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean and then globally.' Meanwhile, extensive propaganda by state media regarding this drone carrier has elicited varied reactions from social media users, including a user named Ali on the social media platform 'X' who wrote: 'There is a big difference between designing a drone carrier that can carry military equipment and personnel and giving a tanker to Asghar the welder and his friends to build a ramp on it!!' Another user named Shahram Sabzevari, who introduced himself as a former military personnel, wrote: 'A combination of delusion and clumsy cinematic techniques...' The military adventure of the Islamic Republic has taken place at a time when the United States has once again revived its maximum pressure policy against the Iranian government due to its nuclear program and destabilizing actions in the Middle East, and the unprecedented decline in the value of Iran's national currency continues. In recent decades, the Islamic Republic has spent tens of billions of dollars from Iran's budget to advance its nuclear program, develop its missile and military programs, and support its proxy groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Gaza, and other areas of the Middle East. This is while economic crises, including poverty, unemployment, inflation, and rising prices, as well as environmental issues such as the drying up of lakes and wetlands, lack of drinking water, and air pollution, have intensified unprecedentedly, forcing millions of Iranian citizens, including elites, specialists, and technocrats, to leave Iran in recent decades. The worsening economic conditions in Iran have led to widespread protests by workers, retirees, teachers, nurses, and other wage earners in recent years. The Islamic Republic has turned to OPEC to escape the 'maximum pressure' of the U.S.