Tehran: Iran`s Revolutionary Guards successfully deployed a new speed boat capable of destroying enemy ships as war games began on Thursday in a waterway crucial for global oil supplies, Iranian media reported.
The Islamic Republic, which is locked in a dispute with the West over its nuclear activities, often announces advances in its military capabilities in an apparent bid to show its readiness for any attack by Israel or the United States.
On Wednesday, the Pentagon said US military action against Iran remained an option even as Washington pursues diplomacy and sanctions to halt the country`s atomic activities.
Iranian media said naval, air and ground units of the elite Guards force would take part in the three-day exercise in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. About 40 percent of the world`s traded oil leaves the Gulf region through the strategic narrows.
Western military analysts say Iran may resort to "asymmetric warfare" if it comes under attack, for example by deploying swarms of speed boats to disrupt enemy operations in the Gulf.
State broadcaster IRIB said the Guard put into operation for the first time its "smart and unique" Ya Mahdi vessel.
"The radar-evading, high-speed Ya Mahdi vessel is able to track and target the enemy`s surface vessels in a smart way and destroy them," it said, adding it was now being mass produced.
A spokesman for the manoeuvres, Ali-Reza Tangsiri, said Ya Mahdi was a remote-controlled vessel whose missiles could blow seven-meter holes in any enemy ship.
US sanctions push
State Press TV said the Guards` exercise in the Gulf would show off Iran`s defensive capabilities and its determination to maintain security in the region.
The ILNA news agency said more than 300 various high-speed vessels took part in the drill, equipped with missiles and rockets and carrying Guards commandos.
"These vessels are regarded as the enemy`s nightmare," ILNA said.
A hypothetical enemy war ship which had entered Iran`s territorial waters was targeted, seized and destroyed, it said.
Israel, widely believed to have the Middle East`s only atomic arsenal, has described Iran`s nuclear program as a threat to its existence.
Iran, a predominantly Shi`ite Muslim state, has said it would respond to any attack by targeting US interests in the region and Israel, as well as closing the Strait of Hormuz.
Bureau Report
