Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, the Iranian navy, detected and issued a warning to a US surveillance aircraft near the Gulf of Oman on Sunday.
The report stated that following the warning, the US Navy EP-3E aircraft was prevented from entering Iranian airspace without proper clearance. Although the initial statement in the Tasnim report claimed the plane had crossed into Iranian territory, it later clarified that the aircraft had not entered Iranian airspace and had departed after receiving the warning.
The US Department of Defense has not yet commented on the matter.
In the past, there have been similar incidents between Iran and US forces. In 2019, Iran downed a US drone, claiming it was flying over southern Iran.
On December 31, Iran reported that its military had deployed a drone to deter a surveillance plane attempting to approach Iranian military exercises along the Gulf coast without specifying the aircraft’s origin.
For years, the United States has maintained a military presence in the oil-rich Gulf region to ensure the security of its allies.
Tensions between Iran and the United States have worsened over the past year. Negotiations to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement reached an impasse, and Tehran implemented a lethal crackdown on protesters.
The US has also imposed sanctions on suppliers of Iranian drones, which it claims have been utilized to target civilian infrastructure in Ukraine amid the conflict with Russia.
Iran has admitted to sending drones to Russia but maintains that they were dispatched before the invasion. Russia denies using Iranian drones in Ukraine.
