“The joint naval drill of Iran, China and Russia shows successful diplomacy of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Mousavi told reporters on Sunday night on the sideline of a local event.

“This drill demonstrates the determination of countries that are seeking security in the region against those countries that are after creating insecurity,” he said, adding that enemies should take lessons from the drill's messages.

“In the near future, we will conduct a joint wargame with naval forces of China and Russia in the country’s southern waters in the vicinity of the northern Indian Ocean,” Iran Navy Commander Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi said at a press conference in late November.

“After this wargame, there will be one with the naval forces of the Indian Ocean littoral states, which will be held within the framework of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), in a bid to promote convergence among the navies and achieve security in this region through collective contributions from all forces situated there,” he added.

Khanzadi then told Mehr News Agency that “the joint wargame between Iran, Russia, and China, which will hopefully be conducted next month, carries the same message to the world, that these three countries have reached a meaningful strategic point in their relations, with regard to their shared and non-shared interests, and by non-shared I mean the respect we have for one another’s national interests.”

MNA/ 4804908