A US plane carrier shot down an Iranian drone that “aggressively approached” the ship in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday hours earlier than two gunboats operated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps approached a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and threatened to board and seize the ship, in accordance with a US army spokesman.
The two incidents occurred days earlier than US and Iranian officers are due to meet Friday for diplomatic negotiations meant to avert a army conflict.
In the primary incident on Tuesday, US forces shot down an Iranian drone “as the unmanned aircraft aggressively approached” the USS Abraham Lincoln plane carrier, which was transiting the Arabian Sea about 500 miles from Iran’s southern coast, mentioned Capt. Tim Hawkins, a US Central Command spokesman.
“The Iranian drone continued to fly toward the ship despite de-escalatory measures taken by US forces operating in international waters,” Hawkins mentioned. An F-35C fighter jet from the Lincoln shot down the drone to guard the carrier and its personnel, he mentioned.
“No American service members were harmed during the incident, and no U.S. equipment was damaged,” Hawkins mentioned.
Hours later, two Iranian gunboats approached the M/V Stena Imperative — a chemical tanker operated by Americans flying underneath the US flag in the Strait of Hormuz — passing the ship 3 times at excessive speeds as an Iranian Mohajer drone additionally flew overhead, mentioned Hawkins. During considered one of their passes, the Iranians threatened through radio name that they’d board and seize the tanker. The tanker was in worldwide waters, Hawkins mentioned.
US army forces working in the realm responded once they realized of the Iranian threats. The USS McFaul destroyer escorted the tanker away from the realm alongside with defensive air assist from the US Air Force, Hawkins added. The scenario de-escalated as a consequence.
Hawkins mentioned the Iranian conduct was an instance of the Iranians’ “unprofessionalism and aggressive behavior” that will increase the chance of miscalculation for vessels working in the realm and mentioned their “harassment” in worldwide waters gained’t be tolerated by the US.
The incidents come as President Donald Trump has been weighing a major strike on Iran amid stalled discussions about limiting that nation’s nuclear program and ballistic missile manufacturing.
In the final week the US army has accelerated a buildup of army {hardware} in the Middle East, deploying the Lincoln Carrier Strike Group to the area alongside with three guided-missile destroyers and the carrier air wing, which incorporates squadrons of F/A-18E Super Hornet fighters, F-35C Lightning II fighters, and EA-18G Growler digital warfare jets.
The Navy additionally has three destroyers — the USS McFaul, the USS Delbert D. Black, and the USS Mitscher — in the area separate from the carrier strike group.