Iranian Navy Holds IONS Briefing Session
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Iranian navy staged the briefing session of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Maritime Exercise in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas on Tuesday.
The briefing session of the IONS Maritime Exercise (IMEX 2020) was hosted by the Iranian Navy in Bandar Abbas with representatives of the IONS member states in attendance.
Speaking at the event, Admiral Mohammad Reza Azizi, the executive secretary of the meeting, pointed to the two-year presidency of the Iranian Navy at the IONS and said the meeting was proposed by the Navy in order to conduct a joint naval exercise with the IONS members states in the Indian Ocean in the coming months.
Referring to the propaganda campaign of the enemies against the Islamic Republic of Iran, he said, “Holding an international meeting under the current conditions is a sign of Iran’s efforts to establish lasting security and peace across the strategic Indian Ocean with the participation of the IONS member states.”
The IONS is a voluntary initiative that seeks to increase maritime cooperation among navies of the littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region by providing an open and inclusive forum for discussion of regionally relevant maritime issues.
There are 32 Navies at the IONS - 23 members and 9 observers. The member states include Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Australia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Singapore.
