Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, the elite army of the Iranian regime, began military exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Monday, Iranian state television announced. They take place in the context in which Tehran is to hold talks with the US in Geneva.
The intensive exercises, dubbed “Smart Control of the Strait of Hormuz,” are being conducted by IRGC naval forces under the supervision of IRGC chief General Mohammad Pakpour, state television reported.
This exercise, which is taking place “in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman and whose duration has not been specified, aims to prepare the Guardsmen “for potential security and military threats” in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian television reported. They take place in the context of the US tensions, which sent an imposing naval force to the Gulf.
Talks between Washington and Tehran over the latter's nuclear program recently resumed after previous talks failed, and Israel launched attacks on Iran in June 2025, triggering a 12-day war, with the US joining in by striking three Iranian nuclear facilities.
A new round of talks on Iran's nuclear program is scheduled to take place in Geneva on Tuesday, with Oman as the mediator.
Iran and the US also held negotiations in the spring of 2025, but they did not advance due to differences over Tehran's uranium enrichment.
US President Donald Trump is pressuring Iran to strike a deal, with the US deploying a major naval force in the region, which he has described as an “armada”.
The US sent the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort ships in January to the Gulf, and on Friday Trump announced that a second aircraft carrier, the Gerald Ford, would leave “very soon” for the Middle East.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world's oil production transits.
The Strait of Hormuz is a key waterway located between Oman and Iran, connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) describes it as “the world's most important oil transit point”.
Large volumes of crude oil extracted by countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq from oil fields in the Persian Gulf region transit the strait for global consumption.
