MOSCOW (Sputnik) — US aircraft carrier Nimitz and an accompanying warship approached Iranian military vessels on Friday at 4 p.m. local time (11:30 GMT) dispatching a helicopter, which flew near the vessels, the statement read.
"In a provocative and unprofessional action, the Americans fired flares to warn the Zolfaqar flotilla vessels," the statement of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) read as quoted by the Tasnim news agency.
Earlier this week, the USS Thunderbolt patrol ship fired several warning shots at an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps ship in the Gulf. The Iranian boat sailed within 150 yards of US ships on Tuesday, according to the US Navy.
The Pentagon also released video footage of the incident.
The Iranian Navy said the US ship "fired two warning shots into the air with the aim of provocation and intimidation."
Jafari's comments come a day after the US departments of State and Treasury imposed sanctions against 18 entities and individuals tied to the Iranian military, IRGC and the country’s ballistic missile program.
The incident is one of many times when US' and Iranian maritime forces have come dangerously near conflict and likely will not be the last. In June, Iranian lasers targeted a US Super Stallion chopper near the Strait of Hormuz. Max Abrahms from Council of Foreign Relations told Sputnik last week that he "foresee[s] bilateral tensions rising" between Washington and Tehran.
