– USA Today – The senior Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee says Iran’s construction of a mock-up U.S. aircraft carrier demonstrates Iran’s continued lack of good faith. “We don’t really know what it means, but I for sure don’t trust the Iranians,” Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said Saturday. “It’s some kind of a ruse and whatever they are up to, it’s no good.”

– Iranian Navy – Iranian warships ‘to sail close to US maritime border’ – Iranian warships in the Atlantic Ocean are to sail close to US maritime borders for the first time, a senior naval commander has said.

– USNI News – Iran has launched a new class of indigenous submarine. The construction of the 500-ton submarine demonstrates an improvement in Iran’s ability to produce military hardware despite the ongoing sanctions on the country.

– AP – Iran’s official news agency says the country has redeployed two warships after refitting them with new anti-ship missiles.

– Defense News – Iranian midget submarines are an imminent threat to maritime security in the Arabian Gulf, and regional naval leaders are looking for immediate options “within reach” to counter the threat.

– The Diplomat – Iran is steadily increasing its ability to indigenously produce different kinds of submarines, some of which would likely play an important role in any Iranian effort to close down the Strait of Hormuz. In an interview with the semi-official Fars News Agency this week, Admiral Khordad Hakimi, commander of the Iranian Army’s 4th Naval Zone in the Caspian Sea, said that Iran is mass producing light submarines and has begun constructing medium submarines.

– Daily Telegraph – Iran has dispatched one of its newest warships to shadow the world’s biggest mine-hunting exercise that has been taking place over the last few days in the Gulf.

– US Institute for Peace – What is the record of interaction between the U.S. and Iranian navies in the Persian Gulf?

– BBC – An Iranian naval task force has docked in Sudan, carrying with it a “message of peace and security to neighbouring countries.”

– Washington Post – Iran is rapidly gaining new capabilities to strike at U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf, amassing an arsenal of sophisticated anti-ship missiles while expanding its fleet of fast-attack boats and submarines, U.S. and Middle Eastern analysts say.

– New York Times – Two Iranian warships that docked in a Syrian port as a senior Iranian lawmaker denounced American calls for arming the Syrian opposition were reported on Tuesday to have left the Mediterranean, sailing south through the Suez Canal toward the Red Sea.

– Daily Telegraph – Iran’s navy claimed its warships entered the Mediterranean on Saturday to show its ‘might’ to regional countries, as a high-level American official was due to arrive in Israel.

– Stratfor – Stratfor sources have indicated that Iranian naval exercises scheduled to take place by Feb. 19 have been delayed or possibly canceled. Given other recent moves by the United States and Iran aimed at reducing bilateral tensions, the apparent delay may have been motivated by a desire to facilitate talks on Iran’s nuclear program, among other issues.

– BBC – In 1988, US warships clashed with Iranian forces in the Gulf. As a war of words now escalates, is there a danger that history will repeat itself?

– Economist – Despite its sabre-rattling in the Gulf, Iran’s options are limited

– UPI – An Iranian naval official said the country’s navy plans to deploy ships in the Atlantic Ocean near U.S. maritime borders.

– UPI – Cruise missiles with a range of 124 miles were delivered to the Iranian navy to bolster the country’s national defense, the Iranian military said.

– Associated Press – Iran’s navy chief says he is seeking closer naval ties with Syria.

– Washington Post – Iranian officials on Tuesday hailed the passage of two warships through Egypt’s Suez Canal as a milestone in Iran’s effort to play a greater role in maritime affairs.

– BBC – Two Iranian warships have entered the Suez Canal to make a passage to the Mediterranean Sea, canal officials say.

– BBC – Plans by two Iranian warships to pass through the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean have been cancelled, says an Egyptian official.

– Associated Press – A common fight against piracy brought U.S. and Iranian navy commanders together in a meeting with other participants earlier this month.

Daily Telegraph – Iran navy produces armed copy of Bladerunner 51 speedboat

Iran says it will mass produce armed replicas of the Bladerunner 51, the British-built speedboat hailed among the fastest in the world, for its navy in the Gulf.

AFP – Iran navy equipped with four new submarines

Iran’s navy on Sunday took delivery of four new mini submarines of the home-produced Ghadir class.

Financial Times – Iran-bound powerboat raises fears

Has a record-breaking British powerboat become the “ultimate toy” for an Iranian playboy or – as US investigators fear – is it now equipped with the world’s fastest torpedoes aimed at sinking an aircraft carrier in the Gulf?

Thanks to Mark for the link!