DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran and the United States leaned into gunboat diplomacy on Thursday asnuclear talks between the nationshung in the balance, with Tehran holding drills with Russia and the Americans bringing another aircraft carrier closer to the Mideast.
The Iranian drill and the arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier near the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea underscorethe tensions between the nations. Iran earlier this week also launched a drill that involved live-fire in theStrait of Hormuz, the narrow opening of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes.
The movements of additional American warships and airplanes don’t guarantee a U.S. strike on Iran — but it does give President Donald Trump the ability to carry out one should he choose to do so.
He has so far held off on striking Iran after setting red lines over the killing of peaceful protesters and the Iranian authorities’ mass executions, while reengaging Tehran in nuclear talks that were earlier disrupted by the Iran-Israel war in June.
Iran has asked for a two weeks’ pause before any new talks over its nuclear program with the U.S. after this week’s round in Geneva.
“Should Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social website, seeking also to pressure the United Kingdom over its plans to settle the future of the Chagos Islands with Mauritius. Fairford is an airfield in England used the by the U.S. Air Force.
There’s growing international concern about a possible military confrontation, with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urging his nation’s citizens to immediately leave Iran as “within a few, a dozen, or even a few dozen hours, the possibility of evacuation will be out of the question.” He did not elaborate and the Polish Embassy in Tehran did not appear to be drawing down its staff.
“This week, another 50 U.S. combat aircraft — F-35s, F-22s, and F-16s — were ordered to the region, supplementing the hundreds deployed to bases in the Arab Gulf states,” the New York-based Soufan Center think tank wrote. “The deployments reinforce Trump’s threat — restated on a nearly daily basis — to proceed with a major air and missile campaign on the regime if talks fail.”
Meanwhile, Iran struggles with unrest at home followingits crackdown on protests, with mourners now holding ceremonies honoring their dead 40 days after their killing by security forces. Some of the gatherings have included anti-government cries, despite threats from authorities.
The drill Thursday saw Iranian forces and Russian sailors conduct operations in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported. The drill will be aimed at “upgrading operational coordination as well as exchange of military experiences,” IRNA added.
Source: Drudge Report
