The U.S. Navy announced that one of its ships fired warning shots on Monday after three boats belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard approached it, as well as another American vessel in the Arabian Gulf. The military stated in a release: "U.S. crews issued numerous warnings via radio and loudspeakers, but the Iranian Revolutionary Guard boats continued their close maneuvers." The military added: "At that point, the crew of the U.S. patrol ship 'Firebolt' fired warning shots, and the Iranian boats moved away from the two American ships to a safe distance." According to the U.S. Navy, the two American vessels were conducting "routine patrols in international waters." The closest the Iranian fast-attack boats came to the American ships was 68 yards during the incident that occurred on Monday in international waters in the northern Gulf.
The incident took place while Iran and global powers are seeking to expedite efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back to compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal, amid reassurances from the United States to its allies regarding the status of the talks. On Tuesday, U.S. Central Command Chief General Kenneth McKenzie stated that his military is "keen not to allow such incidents to turn into a persistent provocation," although he did not specifically address Monday's event. McKenzie added that "the activities we usually see from the Revolutionary Guard Navy are not necessarily state-directed actions, but could be irresponsible acts carried out by local leaders on the ground."
An unnamed U.S. official stated that "the Revolutionary Guard boats have been known to harass fishing boats in the area where the incident occurred, but it was not overly concerning." The U.S. military statement noted: "The United States is not an aggressor... but our forces are trained to take effective defensive action when necessary."
Second Incident in April
This is the second incident between the U.S. Navy and Iranian vessels since the beginning of the year. It is the first time since 2017 that the U.S. Navy has fired warning shots. On Tuesday, the U.S. Fifth Fleet announced that Iranian Revolutionary Guard naval assets approached two U.S. ships in an "aggressive" manner at the beginning of this month. The Fifth Fleet explained in a statement that one ship and three Iranian fast-attack boats approached the two U.S. vessels, which were conducting routine security patrols, on April 2. Such incidents have occurred occasionally over the past five years and have nearly led to confrontations between the two parties, although last year saw relative calm.
