Northern Fleet (Iran)

The 4th Region^[1] or the Northern Fleet^[2] (Persian: ناوگان شمال) is the flotilla of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy in the Caspian Sea.

Northern Fleet
Astara Anzali Noshahr Amirabad Manjil Rasht Lahijan Langarud Hasanrud Aktau Makhachkala Astrakhan Baku Current naval bases of the Northern Fleet (in blue) and foreign port calls made by its vessels (anchor sign). Historic installations are also shown (in white).
Active	1742–1813 1921–present
Country	Iran
Size	3,000 personnel (2007 estimate)[1]
Part of	Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
Garrison/HQ	Bandar Anzali, Gilan Province
Equipment	1 frigate 1 corvette 4 fast attack crafts 1 minesweeper 10 patrol boats
Engagements	Soviet invasion of Iran (1941)
Commanders
Current commander	Vice Commodore Abdolvahab Taheri

History

18th century

See also: Afsharid navy § Northern fleet

The Persian fleet in the Caspian Sea was revived in 1742 by Nader Shah of Afsharid dynasty.^[3] He saw the flotilla as an essential tool to secure maritime trade and defend coasts of his northern lands, where Turkmen pirates often attacked.^[4]

By 1745, the fleet included two frigates and four smaller vessels while more were under construction at the Persian shipyards.^[5] One of the ships had a capacity of twenty canons and reportedly was more capable than Russian ships.^[6] Englishman John "Jamal Beig" Elton supervised the shipyard located in Anzali,^[6] as well as additional facilities in Lahijan and Langarud.^[7] Moscow was unhappy with the fleet, and subsequently tried to counter Persian influence in the sea.^[5][7] Following the death of Nader Shah, the Russians took the opportunity of anarchy to burn down the fleet in 1751–1752 and the naval stores in Rasht.^[4]

19th century

See also: Russo-Persian War (1804–1813) and Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)

The Treaty of Gulistan (1813), deprived Iran from having a naval fleet in the Caspian Sea and Russia was granted with exclusive rights to operate the only naval forces in the sea, known as the Caspian Flotilla.^[8]

By the end of the 19th century, one royal yacht –"a small dilapidated paddle-wheel steamer" named Nasereddin– was the only asset of the Persian navy in the Caspian Sea.^[3]

20th century

See also: Anzali Operation and Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran

In 1904, Iranians began construction of Anzali's port that was completed in 1913.^[9]

Prior to and during the World War I, Iran had no naval forces in the north. The Russian Navy blockaded Anzali in 1909 and relocated some 2,000 troops to Iran using the port city.^[8] The northern part of Iran remained under Russian military occupation and was placed under their wartime administration for some year to come. The Russians also controlled navigation in the sea.^[8] By March 1917, Russian forces were weakened and the region fell into British hands to prevent an Ottoman control. Afterwards, they created the British Caspian Flotilla.^[8]

The Russo-Persian Treaty of Friendship signed in 1921, eased Iranian efforts to reestablish its Caspian fleet once again, despite the fact the Soviets unilaterally assumed the authority for a preemptive attack on Iran in case they deemed Caspian security at stake, and Iranians promised to oust non-Iranians in their naval service in the event of harming Soviet interests.^[8]

Anzali became a military port, in addition to its commercial role, during reign of Reza Shah who reigned between 1925 and 1941.^[8] The city hosted Iran's naval academy and served as a naval base before World War II.^[8]

On 25 August 1941, Soviets launched a surprise attack on Iran and their seaplanes bombed Anzali and villages in the vicinity. A day later, Iran surrendered and all of the vessels in the fleet (except for the royal yacht) were seized.^[8]

In 1969, Iran moved one of its minesweepers in the Southern Fleet that was purchased from the United States in 1959 to the Caspian via Volga. As of 1970, the fleet included two 65-ton and two 45-ton gunships, as well as several boats and launches in addition to the minesweeper.^[8]

During the 1990s, Iran started rebuilding its fleet from scratch^[10] after declaring that it assumes the right to maintain military presence in the Caspian.^[11] An Iranian naval exercise was conducted in November 1995.^[12] In September 1998, Admiral Abbas Mohtaj stated "a stronger presence in the Caspian Sea is among the future programs of the Navy".^[12] The forces held another naval exercise, codenamed Mirza Kuchak Khan, in 1999.^[13]

Timeline of 21st century events

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Commissioned vessels

2003	Paykan
2004
2005
2006	Joshan
2007
2008
2009	Derafsh
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015	Damavand
2016
2017	Separ

2001

• 23 July: Iranian corvette Hamzeh forced the vessel chartered by BP, which was going to work on Alborz/Araz offshore oil field (disputed between Iran and Republic of Azerbaijan), to leave the area.^[14][15]

2002

• Iranian authorities announced that the naval forces will be deployed in the Caspian Sea whenever it is necessary to defend national interests.^[16]
• Iran tested missiles launched from cargo ships.^[8]
• 1–15 August: Russia declined Iran's offer to participate with four warships in a large-scale naval wargame in August. It was held with presence of a fighter jet from Kazakhstan and one combat ship from Azerbaijan. Turkmenistan boycotted the wargame but Russia agreed to allow Iran to send observers.^[8][9]

2003

• October: A new gunboat was launched.^[17]

2007

• Russian naval group made a visit to Bandar Anzali.^[18]

2008

• 27 November: Derafsh was launched.^[19]

2012

• August: Iran threatened to deploy Ghadir class submarines to the Caspian Sea in response to Azerbaijani provocations.^[20]

2013

• 29 June–3 July: Marking the first voyage of Iranian navy in Volga, fast attack crafts Paykan and Joshan made a port call to Astrakhan.^[18]

2015

• 9–12 August: Russia ships Volgodonsk and Makhachkala, both Buyan-class corvettes, visited Bandar Anzali and participated in joint drill with Iran.^[18]
• 22 October: Naval group consisting of Damavand, Paykan and Joshan made visits to Astrakhan (the second of such mission), as well as Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan.^[18]

2016

• September: Iranian naval group visited Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan.^[18]

2017

• March: Iranian vessels made a port call to Makhachkala on 9 March, on the fifth flag mission to Russia.^[18]
• April: Starting on 8 April, the first flag mission to Kazakhstan began.^[18]
• 13–15 July: Russian corvette Makhachkala docked at Bandar Anzali (the fifth such mission).^[18]
• 6–9 October: An Azerbaijani Stenka-class patrol boat harbored at Anzali in the first Azerbaijani navy visit to Iran.^[18]
• 14 October: Damavand and Paykan left for a visit to Makhachkala (21 October).^[18]

2019

• 22–29 April: Joshan and Separ went on a training mission and docked at Aktau, Kazakhstan.^[18]

2020

• September: Iranian warships Paykan and Joshan took part in multinational exercise Caucasus 2020.^[21][22]

Units

Operational units

• Naval Base at Anzali, Gilan^[23]
• Naval Base at Astara, Gilan^[23]
• Naval Base at Amirabad, Mazandaran^[23]
• 4th Marine Brigade at Anzali, Gilan

Logistic units

• Logistics base at Manjil, Gilan^[24]

Training centers

• Naval University at Noshahr, Mazandaran^[25]
• Naval Training Centre at Rasht, Gilan^[25]
• Marine Training Centre at Manjil, Gilan

Commanders

• Saifallah Anushiravani (1970s)^[26]
• Habibollah Sayyari (?)^[27]
• Afshin Rezayee Haddad (?–2017)^[28]
• Ahmadreza Bagheri (2017–2018)^[29]
• Abdolvahab Taheri (2018–present)^[30]

Current equipment

Damavand is the flagship of the northern fleet^[2]

IRIS Separ (P234), commissioned in 2017

IRIS Hamzeh (802), commissioned in 1936

Principal surface combatants in the fleet include:

Class and type	Ship	Pennant number	Commissioned	Status
Moudge-class frigate	Damavand	77	2015	Under repair
Hamzeh-class corvette	Hamzeh	802	1936	In service
Sina-class fast attack craft	Paykan	P224	2003	In service
	Joshan	P225	2006	In service
	Derafsh	P233	2009	In service
	Separ	P234	2017	In service
Adjutant-class minesweeper	Salman	302	1959	In service

Other notable vessels are in the fleet include an unknown number of Ghaem class general-purpose patrol craft,^[31] and reportedly three surviving Sewart-class inshore patrol crafts (out of the nine acquired from the United States Coast Guard in c.1953) namely Mahnavi Hamraz, Mahnavi Taheri and Mahnavi Vahedi.^[32] As of 2010, Iran was estimated to operate some 90 vessels, including auxiliary and small-sized units.^[25]

Assessment

After Russia, Iran has the second largest fleet in the Caspian sea.^[1] Tehran has strengthened its fleet since the early 2000s.^[1]

According to Paul A. Goble, with recent expansion of Iranian naval forces in the Caspian Sea, "Moscow will have to take this Iranian fleet into consideration as a potential challenge".^[33] James M. Dorsey states that Iranian growing presence is likely to boost rivalries among Caspian states.^[34]

Comparison of naval forces in the Caspian Sea (2018)

Force	Fleet
	FF	FS	FAC	PB	hel	MC	amph
Azerbaijani Navy	—	1	—	10	3	4	6
Kazakh Naval Forces	—	—	2	22	—	1	—
Caspian Flotilla	2	8	3	5	60	5	11
Turkmen Naval Forces	—	—	2	17	—	—	—
Northern Fleet	—	1	4	10	1	1	—
Source: IISS via The Washington Institute for Near East Policy[23]

References

1. Cordesman, Anthony H.; Kleiber, Martin (2007). Iran's Military Forces and Warfighting Capabilities: The Threat in the Northern Gulf. Greenwood. p. 125. ISBN 978-0-313-34612-5.
2. Goble, Paul (28 May 2020), "Iran Expanding Its Naval Presence in the Caspian", Eurasia Daily Monitor, 17 (75)
3. de Planhol, Xavier (18 November 2011) [15 December 1994]. "DARYĀ". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica. Fasc. 1. Vol. VII (Online ed.). New York City: Bibliotheca Persica Press. pp. 79–81.
4. Mirfendereski, Guive (20 July 2004). "CASPIAN SEA ii. DIPLOMATIC HISTORY IN MODERN TIMES". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica (Online ed.). New York City: Bibliotheca Persica Press.
5. Axworthy, Michael (20 December 2012) [1 January 2000]. "NAVY i. Nāder Shah and the Iranian Navy". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica (Online ed.). New York City: Bibliotheca Persica Press.
6. Rezazadeh Langaroudi, Reza (9 February 2012) [15 December 2001]. "GĪLĀN vi. History in the 18th century". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica. Fasc. 6. Vol. X (Online ed.). New York City: Bibliotheca Persica Press. pp. 642–645.
7. Axworthy, Michael (2018). Crisis, Collapse, Militarism and Civil War: The History and Historiography of 18th Century Iran. Oxford University Press. pp. 172–174. ISBN 9780190250324.
8. Mirfendereski, Guive (2007), "Caspian Sea", in Hattendorf, John J. (ed.), The Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acref/9780195130751.001.0001, ISBN 9780195307405
9. Zonn, Igor S.; Kosarev, Aleksey N.; Glantz, Michael; Kostianoy, Andrey G. (2010), "Chronology of the Key Historical Events on the Caspian Sea in the 17th–21st Centuries", The Caspian Sea Encyclopedia, Springer, pp. 464–517, doi:10.1007/978-3-642-11524-0, ISBN 9783642115240
10. Valigi, Marco, ed. (2015), Caspian Security Issues: Conflict, Cooperation and Energy Supplies, Edizioni Epoké, ISBN 9788898014323
11. Ehteshami, Anoushiravan, ed. (2002), From The Gulf To Central Asia: Players In The New Great Game, University of Exeter Press, p. 103, ISBN 0859894517
12. Ascher, William; Mirovitskaya, Natalia (2000), The Caspian Sea: A Quest for Environmental Security, Springer, pp. 121–122, ISBN 9780792362197
13. Katik, Mevlut (2004), "Militarisation of the Caspian Sea", in Akiner, Shirin (ed.), The Caspian: Politics, Energy, Security, Routledge, p. 272, ISBN 9781135798512
14. Peimani, Hooman (2008). Conflict and Security in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. p. 253. ISBN 978-1-59884-054-4.
15. Charney, Jonathan I.; Colson, David A.; Smith, Robert W. (2005), International Maritime Boundaries, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, p. 3544, ISBN 9789004144613
16. Silverstone, Paul H. (2002), "Naval Intelligence", Warship International, 39 (1), International Naval Research Organization: 43, JSTOR 44892851
17. Silverstone, Paul H. (2003), "Naval Intelligence", Warship International, 40 (1), International Naval Research Organization: 29, JSTOR 44892951
18. Nadimi, Farzin (April 2020), "Iran's Evolving Approach to Asymmetric Naval Warfare: Strategy and Capabilities in the Persian Gulf" (PDF), The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (Policy Focus), no. 164, Appendix E: IRIN’s Long-range Task Forces And Naval Visits Abroad, pp. 64–74, retrieved 15 July 2020
19. Silverstone, Paul H. (2008), "Naval Intelligence", Warship International, 45 (3), International Naval Research Organization: 175, JSTOR 44894958
20. Binnie, Jeremy (8 August 2012), "Analysis: Iran threatens to deploy subs to the Caspian", Jane's Defence Weekly, 49 (35)
21. "Iranian Navy ships taking part in Caucasus 2020 exercise in Caspian Sea", Interfax, 23 September 2020
22. "Iranian Navy ships took part in an episode of the maneuvers "Kavkaz" in the Caspian sea", Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, 23 September 2020
23. Nadimi, Farzin (April 2020), "Iran's Evolving Approach to Asymmetric Naval Warfare: Strategy and Capabilities in the Persian Gulf" (PDF), The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (Policy Focus), no. 164, p. 8, retrieved 15 July 2020
24. "Iran navy opens logistics base in northern city", Tehran Times, 25 July 2017, retrieved 15 July 2020
25. Zonn, Igor S.; Kosarev, Aleksey N.; Glantz, Michael; Kostianoy, Andrey G. (2010), "Naval Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran", The Caspian Sea Encyclopedia, Springer, pp. 303–304, doi:10.1007/978-3-642-11524-0, ISBN 9783642115240
26. Mirfendereski, Guive (2001). A Diplomatic History of the Caspian Sea. Springer. p. 217. doi:10.1057/9780230107571_4. ISBN 978-0-230-10757-1.
27. Iranian Naval Forces: A Tale of Two Navies (PDF), Office of Naval Intelligence, February 2017, p. 17, ISBN 978-0160939686
28. Maclean, William (9 February 2014), "Iran says warships sailing towards U.S.: agency", Middle East Institute, retrieved 15 July 2020
29. Majidyar, Ahmad (3 July 2017), "Iran's Navy Launches Five-Day Naval Drills in Caspian Sea", Middle East Institute, retrieved 15 July 2020
30. "Pakistan Naval Chief stresses importance of stronger ties with Iran", Islamic Republic News Agency, 30 August 2021, retrieved 30 September 2021
31. "Iran wraps up naval drill in Caspian Sea", Mehr News Agncy, 6 July 2017
32. Saunders, Stephen; Philpott, Tom, eds. (2015), "Iran", IHS Jane's Fighting Ships 2015–2016, Jane's Fighting Ships (116th Revised ed.), Coulsdon: IHS Jane's, p. 392, ISBN 9780710631435, OCLC 919022075
33. Goble, Paul (12 September 2019), "Iran May Not Be the Entirely Reliable Ally in the Caspian Moscow Hopes For", Eurasia Daily Monitor, 16 (124)
34. Dorsey, James M. (8 June 2020), "Iranian naval activity shines light on Caspian Sea rivalries", Modern Diplomacy