Top US Commander: Iran's 'lethal aid facilitation,' use of 'surrogate forces' are destabilizing

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (Kurdistan24) - A top United States commander warned on Wednesday that Iran is the greatest long-term threat to stability because of its regional ambitions.

Testifying before House Armed Services Committee, Army General Joseph Votel, head of the U.S. Central Command said Iran's behavior in the region is provocative and unsafe.

"I believe that Iran is operating in what I call a gray zone. And it's an area between normal competition between states — and it's just short of open conflict," he added.

The general explained Iran is exploiting this area in a variety of ways including "lethal aid facilitation," the use of "surrogate forces" and cyber activities.

“It is my view that Iran poses the greatest long-term threat to stability in this part of the world,” Votel said.

Votel who has overseen operations against the Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan is now supervising over 80,000 soldiers on land, sea, and air in the Middle East and Central Asia.

"We must make sure that we are postured for purpose in this region," Votel said. "We must have a credible, ready, and present force."

He said Iran had moved advanced weaponry into Yemen, which threatens ship traffic through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

He added that the international shipping lanes are being turned into another Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has elaborate shore-based weapons that in a time of crisis could shut down shipping in the Persian Gulf.

"We need to look at opportunities where we can disrupt [Iran] through military means or other means their activities," he said. "We need to look at opportunities where we can expose and hold them accountable for the things that they are doing."

"I think that Iran's objective here is to be the right regional hegemon. They want to be the predominant power in the region," Votel said. "There's no doubt about that and I think that's what they are pursuing."

Votel said Iranian fast boats continue to harass U.S. or other nations' ships in international waters in the Persian Gulf about 300 times a year, an average of every day or so.