"YES WE CAN" - Iran, Russia, China, Syria to Stage Biggest Joint Wargames in Middle-East in coming weeks.

"YES WE CAN" - Iran, Russia, China, Syria to Stage Biggest Joint Wargames in Middle-East in coming weeks.(Fars).HT: IsraelMatzav.The Iranian, Russian, Chinese and Syrian armies are due to stage joint amphibious exercises along the Syrian costs in coming weeks, informed sources revealed on Monday. According to informed sources, 90,000 forces from the four countries will take part in the land and sea wargames due to be held in Syria. Ground, air and sea forces as well as air defense and missile units of the four countries will take part in the exercises. Sources also said that Egypt has acceded to grant passage to 12 Chinese warships to sail through the Suez Canal, adding that the military convoy is due to dock at the Syrian harbors in the next two weeks. Russian atomic submarines and warships, aircraft carriers and mine-clearing destroyers as well as Iranian battleships and submarines will also arrive in Syria at around the same date. Syria plans to test its coast-to-sea and air defense missiles in the wargames. A sum of 400 warplanes and 1,000 tanks will also be used in the exercises. A Syrian official, who asked to remain anonymous, had informed two weeks ago that the drills would be conducted in Syria soon. Unofficial sources also said the four countries are now busy with taking swift preparatory measures for these biggest-ever wargames in the Middle-East.Sham Life reported that the maneuvers will be stage in less than one month from now, that is early July.Read the full story here.

Updated - Russia, Syria deny war games with China, Iran.(JPost).The report appears to have originated on Arabic language Syrian media outlet, ShamLife, and was later also published on pan-Arab news site al-Arabiya. The Iranian and Arabic reports said the war-games were scheduled for less than a month's time. Other Iranian media outlets, including the Revolutionary Guards-linked Mashregh News and Mehr News, which is owned by the Islamic Ideology Dissemination Organization, also ran the same report on Tuesday, but did not cite any Iranian official sources as confirming it.Late Tuesday afternoon, Russia's Interfax news agency reported that a political and media adviser to Assad had denied that the war-games would take place. "Nothing of the sort will happen. This is one of those mendacious reports that is being disseminated [about Syria]," adviser Bouthaina Shaaban said, according to Interfax. Interfax cited a report by pan-Arab news agency al-Arabiya which it said was based on the Fars News article. Russia's RIA Novosti news agency reported late Tuesday afternoon that a Russian Defense Ministry spokesman also dismissed reports of the Syrian war games as attempts to "further escalate the situation in Syria."Hmmmm......Read the full story here.