The maiden voyage may just be a token political and training mission to boost morale—or the first step in sending long-range missiles, drones, fast-attack boats, and other materiel to Tehran’s allies in the Caribbean or Mediterranean.

As international nuclear negotiations enter a crucial phase, the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (IRIN) has sent a pair of naval vessels on a long journey around the Cape of Good Hope, potentially bound for either Venezuela or Syria according to various assessments. First deployed on May 10 and currently somewhere in the South Atlantic under the watchful eyes of U.S. intelligence, the pair consist of IRIN’s largest vessel—the seabase ship Makran (pennant number 441)—and the missile frigate Sahand (74). Among other goals, their mission likely includes testing U.S. and allied commitment to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and UN Security Council Resolution 2231, under whose terms Iran is now permitted to export military equipment—though Syria is barred from receiving it while under international sanctions, and Venezuelan deliveries could entail significant legal complications as well.

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Read the rest of the policy analysis at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.