WASHINGTON: The United States military said on Tuesday it shot down an Iranian drone that approached the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said an American F-35C fighter jet downed the Iranian Shahed-139 drone as it flew towards the carrier with what it described as “unclear intent”.
“An F-35C fighter jet from USS Abraham Lincoln shot down the Iranian drone in self-defence and to protect the aircraft carrier and personnel on board,” said CENTCOM spokesperson Tim Hawkins.
He said the drone had “aggressively approached” the carrier and continued flying towards it despite what he called de-escalatory measures taken by US forces operating in international waters.
CENTCOM said the carrier strike group was sailing about 500 miles (800 kilometres) from Iran’s southern coast at the time.
No US personnel were injured and no American equipment was damaged, the CENTCOM spokesperson added.
Hours after the drone was shot down, Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces harassed a merchant vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, the US military claimed.
Hawkins claimed that two IRGC boats and an Iranian Mohajer drone approached the merchant tanker Stena Imperative at high speed and threatened to board and seize it.
The US destroyer USS McFaul responded and escorted the vessel, with defensive air support provided by the US Air Force. The tanker later continued its voyage safely, CENTCOM said.
US-Iran talks
The incidents come as the United States and Iran explore the possibility of renewed talks over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that discussions with Iran were under way, but warned of consequences if diplomacy failed.
“We have talks going on with Iran. We’ll see how it all works out,” Trump told reporters at the White House, declining to specify what would trigger military action.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Tuesday that he had instructed the country’s foreign minister to pursue “fair and equitable negotiations” with Washington, provided talks are held without threats.
Trump has reinstated pressure on Iran since returning to office and has ordered a visible US military buildup in the Middle East, including the deployment of the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group.
