Two Iranian Warships Receive Permission From Brazil To Dock In Rio Despite US Pressure

After getting permission from the Brazilian government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, two Iranian warships docked in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday despite pressure from the United States to bar them.

According to a statement from Rio's port authority, the IRIS Makran and IRIS Dena warships both arrived on Sunday morning.

Brazil had given into the pressure from the U.S. and declined Iran's request for the vessels to dock in Rio in late January, in a gesture from Lula as he flew to Washington to meet U.S. President Joe Biden.

But now that Lula's journey is finished, the ships are free to dock. According to a notice published in the official gazette on Feb. 23, Vice Admiral Carlos Eduardo Horta Arentz, the deputy chief of Brazil's Naval Staff, issued his consent for the ships to port in Rio between Feb. 26 and Mar. 4, reports Reuters.

A request for comment was not immediately answered by the American Embassy in Brasilia.

A foreign vessel may only dock in Brazil with permission from the Brazilian Navy, but only after authorization from the foreign ministry, which also takes into account the logistics and petition from the requesting embassy.

The United States continues to be irritated by the Iranian warships stationed near Brazilian ports as it tries to forge stronger ties with Lula's administration, which took office on Jan. 1.

U.S. Ambassador Elizabeth Bagley pleaded with Brazil not to permit the ships to dock during a press conference on Feb. 15.

"In the past, those ships facilitated illegal trade and terrorist activities, and have also been sanctioned by the United States. Brazil is a sovereign nation, but we firmly believe those ships should not dock anywhere," she said.

One of Lula's efforts to improve Brazil's worldwide position during his prior presidential periods was diplomacy with Iran.

In an effort to mediate a nuclear agreement between Iran and the United States, he went to Tehran to speak with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2010.

Makran is the first and only forward base ship of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, in service with its Southern Fleet since 2021 and named after a coastal region in southeastern Iran.

A former crude oil tanker converted into a warship, she was known by the tentative title Khalij-e Fars before her name was changed to the current.

Dena is the fourth Moudge (or Mowj) class that is a class of domestically produced Iranian light frigates. She was commissioned with a ceremony held in Bandar Abbas on 14 June 2021.

The Moudge class frigate is a class of naval ships built by Iran. The class is named after the first ship of the class, the INS Moudge. These frigates are designed and built in Iran and are intended to be used for a variety of roles, including coastal defense, anti-submarine warfare, and maritime patrol.