In a reiteration of the continuation of the growing strategic relationship between China, Russia and Iran against an increasingly aggressive US, the navies of the three countries began a five-day naval war game named ‘Maritime Security Belt 2025’ from Tuesday to Saturday (March 11-15).
The war drill is being held in the Gulf of Oman, near Iran’s strategically located Chabahar, a port India is keenly invested in. The war drill area is considered ‘strategic’, especially for global trade and energy exports.
Chabahar, Iran’s southernmost port on the Makran coast, connects India with Afghanistan and Central Asia, bypassing Pakistan. More importantly, it is connected to the multi-modal transit corridor called the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) that connects St Petersburg on the Baltic Sea in Russia to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust near Mumbai, which is the largest container port in India.
The INSTC traverses 7,200 km of sea, rail and road links, making it the shortest and the cheapest route possible that links India to Europe.
Since 2014, India has invested considerable time, effort, and money to develop Chabahar port to set up new trade routes acting on the axiom that international trade indeed is a handmaiden of diplomacy. On May 13, 2024, India and Iran signed a pact on developing the Chabahar which is an ideal location for India to gain strategic, economic and military advantages.
On Monday, a Russian defence ministry release said: “The opening ceremony of the international Maritime Security Belt 2025 exercise was held at the port of Chabahar in Iran. The drills involve warships of the Russian, Iranian, and Chinese Navies. The Russian side is represented by the Rezky and Russian Hero Aldar Sydenzhapov corvettes, and the Pechenega tanker of the Pacific Fleet.”
The three navies will practice artillery shooting at sea-based and aerial targets besides testing skills of freeing seized ships, and search and rescue operations at sea. It will involve 15 warships, support vessels and gunboats, as well as helicopters.
A Chinese defence ministry release said China will be represented by the Type 052D guided missile destroyer ‘Baotou’ and a supply ship ‘Gaoyouhu’ from the PLA Navy’s 47th escort task group while the aim of the exercise is "to strengthen military mutual trust and foster pragmatic cooperation among the naval forces of the participating countries."
About 10 ships from the Iranian Navy and the Revolutionary Guard will take part in the drill which is the seventh edition since its inception in 2018. Interestingly, Chabahar is situated in the Sistan and Baluchistan province, only 93 nautical miles from Pakistan’s Gwadar port—a pivotal port in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).