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| US and Iran on collision course over Yemen: U.S. warships sent to intercept Iranian warships in Aden Gulf |
A convoy of Iranian ships headed toward Yemen is now moving away from the war-torn country, days after the U.S. deployed warships to the Yemeni coast, according to two U.S. defense officials.
One of those American ships, the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, has also been redirected away from Yemen to the Persian Gulf.The Iranian ships turned away from Yemen on Thursday and on Friday continued to move northeast, back in the direction of Iran.
"I think it's fair to say that this appears to be a de-escalation of some of the tensions that were being discussed earlier in the week," Pentagon Spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters Friday. He also said that there had been no communication between Iranian and U.S. forces at any point.
The nine-ship Iranian convoy are believed to be laden with weapons bound for rebels in Yemen. The ships, which include seven freighters and two frigates, had sailed southwest along the coast of Yemen heading in the direction of Aden and the entrance to the Red Sea. The two Iranian warships escorting the convoy are Thondor Type 021-class missile boats and the other ships in the convoy are a mix of commercial vessels with some carrying shipping containers.The USS Theodore Roosevelt, a 100,000-ton nuclear-powered aircraft carrier known as the “Big Stick” and her escort, the USS Normandy, a guided missile cruiser, have been shadowing the convoy for the past few days, the sources said.
Multiple U.S. officials had told CNN that the American ships had been deployed to the region to dissuade the nine-vessel Iranian convoy, which included armed ships, from docking in Yemen, where Iran has been supporting and arming the Houthi rebellion.
One of the defense officials who told CNN of the Iranian convoy's movements called the turnaround a "promising sign."U.S. warships are being deployed to
Yemen to monitor ships in the area traveling from Iran and suspected of trafficking arms to Houthi rebels, U.S. officials tell CNN. The move is also meant to reassure allies in the region, the officials said.
U.S. ships do not have authority to forcibly board Iranian-flagged ships.
Earlier this month, a U.S. Navy ship consensually boarded a Panamanian-flagged vessel suspected of trafficking people, drugs or weapons. Nothing was found.
"We are closely monitoring all maritime activity in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden," Commander Kevin Stephens of the Fifth Fleet told CNN. "We are not going to discuss the number and types of vessels we are monitoring or speculate about the possible destination or cargo of those vessels."
U.S. warships from the carrier group of the USS Theodore Roosevelt are joining allied vessels from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other partner nations prepared to intercept a convoy of 7-9 Iranian vessels believed headed for Yemen. The allies are prepared to board Iranian vessels if they proceed into Yemeni territorial waters.
The Roosevelt aircraft carrier and the guided missile destroyer USS Normandy were the two ships the Navy moved into the waters off the coast of Yemen on Sunday. At this stage, there are nine U.S. naval ships operating off the coast in Yemen.
When asked about warnings from Saudi Arabia and the U.S. to keep Iranian navy ships away from Yemen, the Commander of Iran's Regular Navy, Flotilla Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, said his fleet was within operating legally.
"We don't let anyone give us warnings and threats, because we are working according to international law and regulations," he said. "And we work for the security of our country and other countries."
One of the defense officials who told CNN of the Iranian convoy's movements called the turnaround a "promising sign."U.S. warships are being deployed to
Yemen to monitor ships in the area traveling from Iran and suspected of trafficking arms to Houthi rebels, U.S. officials tell CNN. The move is also meant to reassure allies in the region, the officials said.
U.S. ships do not have authority to forcibly board Iranian-flagged ships.
Earlier this month, a U.S. Navy ship consensually boarded a Panamanian-flagged vessel suspected of trafficking people, drugs or weapons. Nothing was found.
"We are closely monitoring all maritime activity in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden," Commander Kevin Stephens of the Fifth Fleet told CNN. "We are not going to discuss the number and types of vessels we are monitoring or speculate about the possible destination or cargo of those vessels."
U.S. warships from the carrier group of the USS Theodore Roosevelt are joining allied vessels from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other partner nations prepared to intercept a convoy of 7-9 Iranian vessels believed headed for Yemen. The allies are prepared to board Iranian vessels if they proceed into Yemeni territorial waters.
The Roosevelt aircraft carrier and the guided missile destroyer USS Normandy were the two ships the Navy moved into the waters off the coast of Yemen on Sunday. At this stage, there are nine U.S. naval ships operating off the coast in Yemen.
When asked about warnings from Saudi Arabia and the U.S. to keep Iranian navy ships away from Yemen, the Commander of Iran's Regular Navy, Flotilla Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, said his fleet was within operating legally.
"We don't let anyone give us warnings and threats, because we are working according to international law and regulations," he said. "And we work for the security of our country and other countries."
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