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Dec 11, 2021
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IRGC Showcases Its New "Red Wasp" Speed Boats; IRGC Commander-In-Chief General Salami: "This Diversity In Speed, Range, Precision, And Destructive Power Gives Us The Ability To Expand Our Territorial Naval Power"; Boats Shown Near USS Roosevelt

#9259 | 04:11
Source: Channel 1 (Iran)Channel 2 (Iran)

Channel 1 (Iran) on December 11, 2021 aired a report about the IRGC's 110 new speedboats equipped with precisions missiles. IRGC Commander-in-Chief General Hossein Salami said that Iran's vessels have a range of high speeds and missile ranges – including an undisclosed range that will soon be revealed to the "great Iranian people." He added: "This diversity in speed, range, precision, and destructive power gives us the ability to expand our territorial naval power." According to the report, the construction, design, and equipment of these vessels were made possible by the IRGC navy and by the efforts of Iranian start-up companies. The reporter added: "With the addition of Ashoura and Zolfaqar boats, a new chain has been created in our country's maritime defense capability."

According to a report that aired on Channel 2 (Iran) on December 11, 2021, the IRGC speedboats, known as the Red Wasps, named for deadly wasps that invaded the southern United States in 2012, "are equipped with cruise missiles, with a range of at least 90 km, can be seen near the American aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt in the Persian Gulf."

Host: "Improving the security of the Persian Gulf with new vessels. 110 speedboats equipped with precision missiles were added to IRGC's naval combat vessels."

Reporter: "Now, even the smallest IRGC boats are equipped with missiles. Today, 100 Ashoura and Zolfaqar class boats with high maneuverability and equipped with precision missiles were added to the IRGC Navy."

General Hossein Salami: "Our vessels have a range of high speeds from 55 knots to almost 100 knots and have different ranges of missile launch capability – from 10 km to a range that we will soon revealed to the great Iranian people, and this is a very high number – at the ceiling of the missile range which has been determined for us as a strategy. So we have capabilities and power. This diversity in speed, range, precision, and destructive power gives us the ability to expand our territorial naval power."

Reporter: "Agility in defense and reconnaissance and identification operations are the results of employing the new vessels of the IRGC.

[...]

"The construction, design, and equipment of these vessels were made possible by the IRGC navy and by the efforts of Iranian start-up companies. With the addition of Ashoura and Zolfaqar boats, a new chain has been created in our country's maritime defense capability.

[...]

"The commander of America's CENTCOM forces, which are responsible for the Persian Gulf as part of their territory of operation says that he is concerned. Perhaps when this American general is talking about cruise missiles, he means the Nasr cruise missile, which is the weapon of the IRGC navy's Zolfaqar boat. The range of this missile is 90 km. The speed of the boat is close to 120 km per hour. The commanders say that because of its hull, and because it is 16 meters long, it cannot be detected by radar until it is within 10 km of the target. Today, per the orders of the IRGC Commander-in-Chief orders, 110 additional speedboats were added to the IRGC navy.

[...]

"The IRGC speedboats are known as the Red Wasps of the Persian Gulf. This is a reference to a wasp that arrived in America in 2012, and within a month, it killed nearly 400 people in forests in the South. Now, these Red Wasps, which are equipped with cruise missiles, with a range of at least 90 km, can be seen near the American aircraft carriet USS Roosevelt in the Persian Gulf. This ship has a length of 330 meters, 20 times more than these speedboats. It is said that is has the ability to simultaneously confront 40 targets in air, at sea level, and underwater, along with the destroyers that support it.

[...]

"A few months ago, another 450 boats and 220 UAVs were added to this southern fleet [of the IRGC navy]. There are no exact figures on the precise number of Iran's speedboats. At the very least, these 560 speedboats on display could match up to 14 aircraft carriers similar to USS Theodore Roosevelt. It should be noted that the total number of American aircraft carriers is 11."

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