Iran to deploy ships near U.S. sea borders

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TEHRAN, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- An Iranian naval official said the country's navy plans to deploy ships in the Atlantic Ocean near U.S. maritime borders.

"Just like the global hegemony that is present near our marine borders, we … also plan to establish a strong presence near U.S. marine borders," the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Rear Adm. Habibollah Sayyari as saying Tuesday.

U.S. Defense Department officials did not have an immediate comment, CNN said. The United States has deployed fleets to the Persian Gulf.

Iranian media quoted naval officials as saying the country would establish a presence in the Atlantic Ocean "the same way that the [world's] arrogant power is present near our marine borders."

Sayyari also said ships would be deployed in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea to protect vessels from pirates who hijack ships for ransom.

Meanwhile, Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi kicked off the production line of a cruise missile called the Qader (the Able) Wednesday, IRNA reported.

The inauguration occurred on the last day of Holy Defense Week, an annual commemoration of the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.

The cruise missile has a 125-mile range, Vahidi said.