Iranian warships in Brazil stirring U.S. and Israeli concern

Shafaq News/ Two Iranian warships arrived this week in Rio de Janeiro after Brazil's government authorized them to dock.

Rio's port authority said in a statement that the IRIS Makran and IRIS Dena warships arrived on Sunday morning.

The step has prompted rebukes from the United States and Israel.

The spokesperson of Israel's foreign relations ministry, Lior Haiat, said on Twitter, "Israel sees the docking of Iranian warships in Brazil a few days ago as a dangerous and regretful development…Brazil should not grant any prize to a malign state."

The U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reports that Washington is discussing the issue with Brazilian partners and wants to ensure Iran "is not able to acquire a foothold, is not able to take advantage of others in our hemisphere."

"It is certainly not the case that the Brazilian government, the Brazilian people, would want to do anything that would assist, that would aid a government, a regime responsible for a brutal crackdown and violent repression against its own people," he added.

Last month, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated both ships for sanctions.