A ceremony in the southern port of Bandar Lengeh marking the joining of Fateh submarine to the Iranian naval fleet on Sunday afternoon was attended by Iranian President, Defense Minister, and top commander of the Iranian navy.

President Rouhani officially inaugurates Fateh submarine

Iran Press/Iran News: Speaking during a ceremony to unveil a 'state-of-the-art' domestically produced submarine, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani said that Iran has never intended to invade any country, but we always defend ourselves very well.  

He added: "Not only in Iran's coastal territories in the Persian Gulf, Oman, and Caspian seas, but also throughout the Indian ocean and other international water bodies, the Iranian navy has a powerful and strong presence.

Elaborating further President Rouhani said: "The Iranian navy defends our interests and secures maritime and shipping routes and promotes Iran's authority."

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Emphasizing the prominent status of Iran's naval forces, president Rouhani went on to say that 'enemy pressure and sanctions, and eight years of imposed war motivated us to become self-sufficient in defense industry, especially in naval industries, surface, and sub-surface fleets.'

"Fortunately, Islamic Republic is self-reliant to defend itself in the land, sky, and sea and probably, Iran has never been as powerful as it is today; we have Iran's Army and IRGC and Basij forces shoulder to shoulder and this has made our strength multiple".

Noting that Iran's power can be a regional one, Rouhani said: "Today, Iran and friendly countries are proudly defending the seas, lands, and skies of the region and do not need the illegitimate presence of trans-regional and foreign forces."

"Iranian military forces always defend our maritime security, and this proves that Iran is a threat to no one, but it is clear that these forces are deterrent to those who are thinking of encroachment," Iranian president continued.

Appreciating Army, IRGC and Ministry of defense and all engineers and staffs, the Iranian president said: "Today we are building home-made frigates and different classes of submarines and this shows the brilliant capability of our naval forces."

Iran's president continued: "The Iranian nation is grateful to their armed forces who promised to defend our lands, seas, and skies with solid faith as they have done over the past forty years."  

In the ceremony, Iran’s newest Fateh-class submarine, armed with underwater-launched cruise missiles joined the Iranian naval forces.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said the submarine has been developed by Iranian experts and boasts state-of-the-art technologies.

“The Fateh submarine is completely homegrown and has been designed and developed by capable experts of the Marine Industries [Organization] of the Defence Ministry and is equipped with the most modern technologies,” he noted. 212/211/103

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