TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s navy says it will hold an annual drill in the strategic Strait of Hormuz as pressure mounts on the country months after the United States re-imposed sanctions on Iran, targeting its vital oil sector.
The strait is located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf and is crucial to global energy supplies, with about a third of all oil traded at sea passing through it.
Iranian Rear Adm. Hossein Khanzadi told state TV on Thursday the 3-day maneuvers will start on Friday and extend as far as the Gulf of Oman and the fringes of the Indian Ocean.
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He said submarines, warships, helicopters and surveillance planes will participate in the drill, dubbed as “Velayat-97.”
The exercise will include missile launches from the vessels.
Iran regularly holds maneuvers in the strait.
