Iran says to stage military exercise in Persian Gulf

TEHRAN, April 21 (Xinhua) -- A top commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said Wednesday that Iran will stage a military exercise in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, local satellite Press TV reported.

"The three-day maneuver will start in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday," Brigadier General Hossein Salami, IRGC deputy commander, was quoted as saying.

The drill, dubbed "Great Prophet 5," is aimed at providing " security of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz," Salami said.

He said that the drill carries the message of "peace and friendship" for Persian Gulf states, adding "the military exercise is not a threat for any neighboring country," the report said.

"We intend to display Iran's constructive, positive and determinative role in establishing security in the region," the report quoted him as saying.

In March, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Iranians would not allow certain powers to disturb security in the Persian Gulf region, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Referring to the presence of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Western forces in Iran's neighborhood, Ahmadinejad said in southern port city of Bandar Abbas that the presence of foreign forces in the region is the source of insecurity in Iran's neighborhood.

Iran has reiterated that it is ready to safeguard the security of the region, especially the Persian Gulf region, in close cooperation with its neighbors.