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Iran says coastal attack will lead to full Gulf closure and mine-laying

An attack on Iran's southern coast and islands will lead to Gulf routes being cut with the laying of sea mines, the country's Defence Council said on Monday, according to state media. The US is considering plans to occupy or blockade Iran's Kharg Island, the country's main oil export hub, to pressure Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping, according to Axios. "Any attempt to attack Iran's coasts or islands will cause all access routes in the Gulf (...) to be mined with various types of sea mines, including floating mines that can be released from the coast," the statement read. "In this case, the entire Gulf will practically be in a situation similar to the Strait of Hormuz for a long time (...) One should not forget the failure of more than 100 minesweepers in the 1980s in removing a few sea mines." The Defence Council recalled that non-belligerent states can only pass through the Strait of Hormuz by coordinating passage with Iran...
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Iran ready to forge stronger ties with Sri Lanka, Raisi says

Iran is ready to strengthen ties with Sri Lanka and other Asian countries, its president, Ebrahim Raisi, said on Wednesday, during a short visit to the island nation, the first by an Iranian president in 16 years. The two countries are set to sign five pacts, or Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) on the visit, only the second since one in April 2008 by Iran's then president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Opening a $514-million hydro power project, Raisi pledged to support development projects in the Indian Ocean island by providing technical and engineering services. "We stand fully ready to further expand bilateral relations with all Asian countries, our neighbouring countries, and sovereign and independent states," Raisi said. Sri Lanka is a sovereign, independent country that has aligned policies with Iran, enabling co-operation to create a shining future for both nations, he added. Iran agreed to build the project in 2010 but funds dried up after it released $50 million, as US sanctions imposed later that year on the Middle East nation made it hard to transfer money, forcing Sri Lanka to fund the rest. The project was also held up because of the COVID-19 pandemic, environmental concerns and protests from villagers. The project will add 120MW to the national grid, while supplying water to 6,000 hectares (15,000 acres) of farmland and drinking water to thousands of families in three districts, the office of Sri Lanka's president said in a statement. "What is common with us we should strengthen," President Ranil Wickremesinghe said at the event. "We are all countries that belong to the south at a time when the south wants to establish its own identity and its own independence." He was referring to the concept of the global south, which emerged to designate developing, emerging or lower-income countries, mostly in the southern hemisphere, and replace the term "Third World" after the Cold War ended.  

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