DUBAI, February 5. /TASS/. Iran, China and Russia will hold joint naval drills before the end of March, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Shahram Irani announced.

"We also invite other countries to take part in the naval drills of Iran, China and Russia that will take place before the end of March," the Tasnim news agency quoted him as saying.

According to the rear admiral, the exercise, aimed at ensuring regional security, will be held in the common interests of its participants.

Last year, Russia, China and Iran conducted their trilateral drills dubbed Maritime Security Belt 2023 in the Arabian Sea off the coast of the Iranian port of Chabahar on March 16-17. Russia’s Northern Fleet said in a statement that participants in the exercise had practiced setting up a multinational task force of warships and conducting joint maneuvering in various orders of battle. They also carried out artillery firing at naval targets in the daytime and hit aerial targets with artillery fire at night. In addition, the exercise included training in how to free a ship with hostages on board and assist a ship in distress at sea.