MOSCOW, December 25 (Sputnik) — The Iranian Army has begun a massive military exercise in a strategic area south of the country, IRNA news agency reported Thursday.
The maneuvers will cover the area of 2.2 million square kilometers (850,000 square miles) and will be held to the west of the Strait of Hormuz. The exercise is being undertaken to improve the response time of the country's military forces, IRNA reported. The drills involve ground, air and navy forces.
Various types of warships, submarines, warplanes and helicopters will be deployed to increase the efficiency of Iran's naval forces during the drill, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Adm. Habibollah Sayyari was quoted as saying by Press TV on Tuesday. Sayyari said the exercise was expected to last for six days.
The Strait of Hormuz, connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, is considered to be strategically important as it is used to transfer large amounts of oil from the Persian Gulf to other countries, including the United States. According to various estimates, about 20 percent of global oil exports cross the strait.
