TEHRAN, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- The navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) on Wednesday kicked off large-scale military drills in the country's southern waters, the official news agency IRNA reported.
According to IRNA, the drills are aimed at displaying "the authority and combat defense preparations of the IRGC Navy in protecting the security of the Persian Gulf and the Iranian islands" including Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb, and the Lesser Tunb.
The IRGC's operational combat, vessel, missile, drone, naval-aviation, electronic warfare and rapid response units are involved in the drills, said the report.
Speaking on the exercises' sidelines, Ali Ozmaei, commander of the IRGC Navy's Imam Muhammad Baqir operational base, said vessels equipped with missiles capable of hitting targets within a range of 600 km are in the drills. ■
