TEHRAN- The commander of the IRGC Navy has denounced the deployment of extra-regional troops and their nuclear-powered submarines in the Persian Gulf, noting that such warships shouldn’t be stationed in the waterway owing to the possible environmental risks they pose.

In televised remarks on Sunday, Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri stated that the presence of nuclear-powered submarines in the Persian Gulf could cause marine contamination in the event of an accident, resulting in a catastrophe in the international waterway.

“Extra-regional countries like the United States, France and others have nuclear-powered submarines. Considering that the Persian Gulf is a closed area, if something happens to one of the submarines and the submarine’s reactor faces a problem or collides with other vessels, it will cause the area to remain polluted for 11 years,” Tangsiri cautioned.

“This means that for 11 years, there will be no fish and aquatic animals in this area, and its water will become unusable. In fact, the Persian Gulf region will be facing a catastrophe,” he added.

The senior commander emphasized that the nations in the region do not bring their nuclear submarines into confined bays, “but they do so in the Persian Gulf while it is prohibited, and this should not happen.”

Tangsiri also warned Iran’s southern neighbors that the deployment of foreign military would not ensure regional stability.

“Our neighbors should never think that extra-regional countries will stay in the region to defend them, rather they will eventually leave the region,” he continued, emphasizing that the foreigners are in the region to sell weapons or pillage oil resources.

A naval alliance amongst the eight Persian Gulf littoral states was another suggestion made by the chief of the IRGC navy to guarantee regional security in the absence of outside forces.

Tangsiri emphasized that the countries of the Persian Gulf are capable of securing the region through mutual cooperation within the framework of an alliance of eight nations, saying, “We can work together to ensure the security of this region in the form of the alliance of the eight Persian Gulf countries and let the people of the region live in peace.”

According to Tangsiri, the extra-regional nations foster anti-Iran sentiment in order to legitimize their unlawful presence in the region.

On multiple times, Iranian military authorities have maintained that the deployment of extra-regional forces in the Persian Gulf is unlawful and that there is no need for them to fortify the security of the vital waterway.