Alwaght- While Trump keeps shuffling the traditional Western alliances and redefining US role in the global security, China, Russia, and Iran wit their joint naval exercises signal that a new weight is emerging in the transitioning security order in the face of the US.
In this connection, on Tuesday, the three countries started Security Belt 2025 naval war games near Iran's Chabahar port and will keep the drills going until Saturday.
Security Belt-2025 is the fifth joint naval exercise between China, Iran and Russia since 2019, covering the strategic triangle between the three straits of Hormuz, Bab-el-Mandeb and Malacca, a triangle through which a large part of the world’s trade in goods and energy passes.
Azerbaijan, South Africa, Oman, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Qatar, Iraq, the UAE and Sri Lanka are participating as observers.
According to a statement released by the Chinese Ministry of Defense, the exercises will include training courses including naval target attack, VBSS (Visit, Board, Search and Seizure), damage control as well as joint search and rescue operations. The aim of the exercises is to deepen military mutual trust and pragmatic cooperation between the forces of the participating countries.
The ministry added that the exercises will mainly focus on non-traditional security areas and will play an important role in ensuring regional security. Other objectives of the drills include strengthening the security of international maritime trade, combating piracy and maritime terrorism, humanitarian actions, exchanging information on maritime search and rescue, and exchanging operational and tactical experiences.
China will send the destroyer Baotou and the auxiliary ship Gaoyouhu from the 47th Escort Task Force of the People's Liberation Army Navy to the exercise, the ministry further held.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that 15 warships, support vessels and gunboats, as well as helicopters, are participating in the exercise. Iran has also deployed a stealth missile cruiser and an auxiliary patrol ship.
Analysts see the exercise as a clear geopolitical maneuver. The joint exercises, reported CNN, demonstrate the growing strategic convergence between Beijing, Moscow, and Tehran, which share a common interest in challenging the Western-led global order.
Messages of drills
The drills can be a message to the Western bloc, suggesting that the three allies are seeking to make a new naval power axis in the world.
The three friendly countries have common positions against the US unilateralism. Therefore, holding these exercises indicates the security and military alliance of these three important and influential countries in confronting the hegemony and excesses of the Western world led by the US.
The high level of military coordination, common interests in confronting Western influence, and the continuation of these exercises indicate that Iran, Russia, and China are trying to move towards creating a multipolar order by abandoning their dependence on the Western-dominated global order.
Until recently, the US dominated the Indian Ocean, but the entry of Iran, Russia, and China as a coordinated maritime bloc into this water area could shift the balance of power in this strategic region and create a new order in maritime security and economic equations.
Iran, Russia, and China are under American economic and political pressure, and holding a joint exercise is a kind of demonstration of unity against these pressures. The exercise is being held in a region of strategic importance to Washington and its allies, so the cooperation shows that the three Eastern powers are ready to respond with greater coordination to the West’s containment strategy.
By holding joint exercises in Venezuela in July 2022, the three countries sent the message to the Americans that they can easily penetrate its backyard, and now they are showing off this power to their rival in the Indian Ocean.
However, the Maritime Security Belt 2025 exercises are not just of a military aspect, but also a demonstration of strategic convergence in the economic and security spheres. Trump has recently made threats against the BRICS, one of the most important emerging economic blocs in the world. Also, according to an analysis by Yaroslav Trofimov of the Wall Street Journal, the US president seems to be cozying up to Russia with the aim of breaking the Beijing-Moscow-Tehran axis. Trump apparently hopes to use geopolitical fault lines and change the global power dynamics in Washington’s favor.
Given this issue, holding the naval exercises by the three key members of BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is a display of the strength of relations of the three nations.
Boosting Iran's position
Having in mind that Trump is re-embarking on "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran and adopting new hostile position against Tehran, Russia and China participation in the naval drills as two big global powers with Iran indicates legitimacy and acceptance of Iranian role as a key player in the naval security.
Given the tense developments in West Asia, this move could strengthen Iran’s diplomatic position globally. Also, by using Chabahar as a naval base, Iran is establishing its strategic role in regional trade and security.
On the other hand, this exercise will provide the three countries with an opportunity to improve their capabilities in operational coordination, naval warfare, and search and rescue operations. Sharing tactical information and military technologies can strengthen the power of this axis in the face of common threats.
In addition, the use of advanced naval equipment and conducting complex maneuvers, especially in the areas of anti-ship defense, rescue operations, and shipping lane security, demonstrate the high readiness of these forces to conduct joint operations in wartime.
These exercises, which are being held near the strategic Strait of Hormuz and the shipping lanes of the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean, will allow the three partners to effectively control vital energy and global trade routes in the event of a crisis.
China, with its Road and Belt Initiative (RBI), Russia, with its strengthening military presence in tropical regions, and Iran, with its development of naval power, are seeking to broaden influence in the Indian Ocean and access to high seas, and therefore this partnership can help strengthen the military presence of these countries in strategic regions.
Creating a balance of power against Western camp
The establishment of this new naval axis can help create a balance against the Western military alliances in the Indian Ocean and Sea of Oman.
The exercises of Washington's rivals in Chabahar are aimed at beefing up the combat power and enhancing the capabilities of the three countries' forces to show that a new era has begun in the world in which the US is no longer the undisputed superpower that imposes its will on others. Therefore, this cooperation, especially if continued and enhanced, could lead to a reduction in the military and economic influence of the US and its allies in this strategic region.
In today's world, the naval power of countries is seen as the biggest achievement in military area, and countries win this race that enjoy powerful and high-tech naval equipment and vessels. China, Russia, and Iran in recent years have managed to upgrade their capability in this area and take on the West that has been leading in this area until recently. Actually, the drills staged in Latin America, Persian Gulf, Mediterranean Sea, and the Indian Ocean in recent years bear witness to this fact.
All in all, Chabahar naval drills are a display of political and military power and an announcement of emergence of a new power axis on the world stage rather than just simple military exercises. In addition to challenging the American hegemony, this strategic cooperation will enhance the mutual trust of the three powers and bring forth a new balance in the world order. They also can show that Tehran, Beijing and Moscow are drawing a new map for global security and trade order.
