Iran: Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari announces Iran’s plans to increase its presence in international waters.He said Iranian submarines will remain in international waters and their missions will continue, IRNA reported on Monday.Rear Admiral Sayyari said it is Iran’s right to be present in these waters like any other nation.

In June Iran’s Navy deployed the Younes submarine in the Red Sea for the first time to join the countries operating in international waters.According to Sayyari, three domestically-built Ghadir submarines also joined Iran’s naval fleet this week. The Iranian fleet currently has 11 Ghadir submarines in service.

Iranian naval forces are conducting active patrols in international waters, the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea region and the Indian Ocean. Iran has made important breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in producing important military equipment and systems over the past years. Tuesday, Press TV

US: Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has said that any possible military strike against Iran would have consequences for the world economy.

“I have to tell you there are going to be economic consequences to that, that could impact not just on our economy but the world economy,” he told reporters on Thursday.

The Pentagon chief once again threatened the Islamic Republic with diplomatic pressure and sanctions.

“Obviously to go beyond that raises our concerns about the unintended consequences that could result,” Panetta was quoted as saying by Reuters. On November 8, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano released a report claiming that Iran was engaged in activities aimed at developing nuclear weapons. Tehran has rejected the report as “unbalanced, unprofessional and prepared with political motivation and under political pressure by mostly the United States.”

The US and its allies are using the report as a pretext to put more pressure on Iran, already under four rounds of UN Security Council sanctions. Press TV