A US warship fired warning shots after three Iranian vessels came within about 200ft of it in the Gulf, the American military said.
Three fast inshore attack craft from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) harassed the USS Firebolt, a patrol ship, and the coast guard cutter Baranof, according to a US statement.
The incident, which took place on Monday in international waters, is the second time that ships from the IRGC navy have targeted US ships in the Gulf this month and occurred as US-led talks in Vienna to revive the Iranian nuclear deal, which President Trump tore up in 2018, gather momentum.
Although such incidents are not uncommon, there have been few encounters in the past year. Military officials said that such acts were usually carried out by local commanders, and were not directed by senior officials.
When the Iranian vessels approached the American ship, US crews issued warnings using bridge-to-bridge radio and loud-hailer devices. When they came within 204ft, “the crew of Firebolt then fired warning shots” and the vessels moved away to a safe distance from the US ship, the US military said.
The head of US forces in the Middle East said that the American military wanted to ensure that such incidents did not turn into a cycle of provocation.
Tensions between the US and Iran were heightened during Trump’s presidency but President Biden has expressed a desire to re-engage. Last week US and Iranian officials said progress had been made in talks about rejoining the nuclear deal, which is designed to stop Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. It also follows
leaked audio of Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, criticising the IRGC.
While offering to rejoin the agreement in February, Biden stressed the need to reduce “Iran’s destabilising activities across the Middle East”.