The Revolutionary Guards began military exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Monday, Iranian state television said, on the eve of new talks with the United States in Geneva.
Published on: 02/16/2026 - 9:48 p.m.
The Revolutionary Guards, the ideological army of the Islamic Republic of Iran, began military exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Monday February 16, according to Iranian state television, on the eve of talks with the United States in Geneva.
This exercise, the duration of which has not been specified, aims to prepare the Guardians "for potential security and military threats", television indicated, while the United States has deployed an imposing naval force in the Gulf.
Iranian officials have repeatedly threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, particularly in times of tensions with the United States, but it has never been closed.
It is through this strait that approximately 20% of world oil production passes.
Foreign ships “under total surveillance”
These exercises are taking place "in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman" and are supervised by General Mohammad Pakpour, head of the Guards, state television pointed out.
This announcement comes on the eve of new nuclear talks in Switzerland between Iran and the United States, mediated by the Sultanate of Oman.
The two countries, enemies for four decades, resumed their discussions on February 6 in Oman, the first since a war in June, triggered by Israel and which was briefly joined by the United States to strike Iranian nuclear facilities.
Iran and the United States had already held negotiations in spring 2025, but they stumbled in particular on the question of uranium enrichment.
See alsoHow long will the Islamic Republic be able to stay in power in Iran?
US President Donald Trump, who is pushing Iran to seal a deal, has deployed a large naval force to the region, which he has described as an "armada".
After sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort ships to the Gulf in January, he indicated on Friday that a second aircraft carrier, the Gerald Ford, would leave "very soon" for the Middle East.
Mohammad Akbarzadeh, a senior official in the Revolutionary Guard naval forces, warned Monday that all foreign ships in the region were "under full surveillance" and "within range of defensive power" of Iran.
With AFP
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