By Reza Shafa
The mullahs’ regime, with the authorization of its Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has approved the agenda, plans, and budget for expanding its military bases in the region.
According to reports obtained from sources within the regime, meetings have been conducted in the presence of Khamenei and other senior officials of the regime, in which the agenda, plans, and budget for expanding the regime’s military bases have been approved and the task of establishing new bases has been delegated to the military. The creation of a new naval base east of the Strait of Hormuz, on the port of Jask, has been one of the initiatives in this regard. The regime seeks to utilize the strategic status of this port for easier access to warm waters and proximity to the Indian Ocean, in order to implement its aims. It has been stressed in the course of internal briefings within the regime that information about the equipment or forces stationed in the new bases must remain confidential.
With regards to the causes of such an initiative, Habibollah Sayyari, commander of the regime’s naval forces stated, “In light of the presence of foreign forces in Iran’s waters, the military needs new bases along the Sea of Oman.” Abdolrahim Moussavi, Deputy Commander of the regime’s military has also said, “In the past, our military has had to face regional enemies. Today, however, we are facing extra-regional threats.”
An internal report inside the regime laying out guidelines for its organs reads, “We must in a way boast about our power and dominance to other countries in the region, and portray ourselves as the dominant regional power. In light of the probability of an Israeli or American attack against Iran, with the establishment of this military base, our ability to close off the Strait of Hormuz and block the path of oil shipments, and thus pressure the West and Arab countries, would increase. Developing our nuclear program is essential to the strengthening of military strength in this region. The recent American helicopter attacks on Syrian soil and the tensions surrounding the security agreement in Iraq add to the gravity of this decision.”
With regards to the Jask port, the guidelines report goes on to say, “The defensive frontiers of Iran must advance. Establishing this base on the east of Strait of Hormuz will help us increase the reach of our missiles against the enemy to a 1500 to 3000 km radius. At the naval port of Jask, we must enhance our dominance over the Persian Gulf using the Thunder aircrafts. We must also increase the number of our military exercises and set up advanced missile systems defending the sites.”
The guidelines report also stresses the waging of a propaganda war augmented by an empty show of force, adding, “Considering the falling price of oil and the economic consequences tied to it, the establishment of a new base at the Strait of Hormuz or other areas similar to it can probably lead to a hike in oil prices.”
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Reza Shafa is an expert on the Iranian regime's Intelligence networks, both in Iran and abroad. He has done extensive research on Iranian Ministry of Information and Security (MOIS) also known as VEVAK, Intelligence Office of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and Qods Force among others. Currently he is a contributor to NCRI website.
