U.S. Navy sailors man M2A1 .50-caliber machine guns aboard a Mark VI patrol boat attached to Commander, Task Force 56, during an interoperability exercise in the Arabian Gulf.
Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class William Carlisle | U.S. Navy
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy warned on Tuesday that vessels in the Persian Gulf should stay at least 100 meters away from U.S. warships or will be "interpreted as a threat and subject to lawful defensive measures."
The notice to mariners was issued to "enhance safety, minimize ambiguity and reduce opportunities for miscalculation," according to a statement by U.S. Naval Forces Central Command.
"Our ships are conducting routine operations in international waters wherever international law allows, and do not seek conflict, however, our commanding officers retain the right to self-defense if deemed necessary," the statement added.
Tuesday's warning comes a little over a month after the Pentagon claimed Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy took "dangerous and provocative" actions near U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships in the Persian Gulf.
Six U.S. military vessels were conducting training operations in international waters when 11 Iranian ships "crossed the bows and sterns of the U.S. vessels at extremely close range and high speeds," according to a U.S. Navy statement.
The U.S. crews issued multiple warnings via bridge-to-bridge radio, five short blasts from the ships' horns and long-range acoustic noise maker devices to the Iranian ships.
President Donald Trump took to Twitter after the incident and warned that the United States would destroy Iranian gunboats that harass American ships at sea.
"I have instructed the United States Navy to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea," the president wrote in a post on Twitter.
The threat represents another anxious turn in relations between Washington and Tehran.
Tensions have soared following Trump's withdrawal from the landmark Iran nuclear deal brokered by the Obama administration.
The 2015 nuclear agreement lifted sanctions on Iran that crippled its economy and cut its oil exports roughly in half. In exchange for sanctions relief, Iran accepted limits on its nuclear program and allowed international inspectors into its facilities.
And while Trump's "maximum pressure" policy has crippled Iran's economy, slashing its oil exports, Tehran has said it will not negotiate with Washington while sanctions are in place.
What's more, the Trump administration has previously said that it will not offer sanctions relief to Iran as the deadly coronavirus outbreak further isolates and cripples the Middle Eastern nation.
"The whole world should know that humanitarian assistance to Iran is wide open, it's not sanctioned," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said during a March 20 press briefing at the White House.
"We are doing everything we can to facilitate the humanitarian assistance moving in and to make sure that the financial transactions connected to that can take place as well. There is no sanction on medicines going to Iran, there is no sanctions on humanitarian assistance going into that country. They've got a terrible problem there and we want that humanitarian, medical assistance to get to the people of Iran," the nation's top diplomat added.
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May 20, 2020 at 05:32AM
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U.S. Navy warns mariners to stay clear of its warships in the Persian Gulf - CNBC
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