The US Navy claims that throughout the course of the night of August 29–30, in international waters in the Persian Gulf, it successfully thwarted an Iranian navy vessel from taking one of its unmanned surface boats.
The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) ship, according to the report, was attempting to “detain” a Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vessel (USV) from the Fifth Fleet, but after cutting off a towing line, the IRGC ship left the region four hours later.
It said there had been no more incidents.
The commander of the US Navy Fifth Fleet described the conduct of the Shahid Baziar, an IRGC support ship, as “flagrant, unjustified, and inconsistent with the behavior of a professional maritime force” in a statement.
Iranian authorities at first gave no confirmation.
The US Navy stated that the USV technology is “commercially accessible and does not retain sensitive or classified information” and that sail drone-type vessel are often employed for mapping or data collection.
In the Persian Gulf, a crucial maritime route that is constantly guarded by American and Iranian military warships, reports of acts that were thwarted are very common.
Despite ongoing tensions over sanctions and regional influence, dangerous maritime confrontations involving the forces of the West and Iran have decreased in recent years.
Iran and the United States are still at odds over a faltering nuclear agreement and what Washington views as Tehran’s malicious activities.