Meanwhile, the Navy chief of the powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard said the American boats showed “unprofessional acts” for 40 minutes before being picked up by Iranian forces after entering the country’s territorial waters.
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Iran was holding 10 U.S. Navy sailors and their two small boats that drifted into Iranian waters after experiencing mechanical problems.
Our investigations show the two US Navy boats entered Iranian territorial waters due to a broken navigation system.
US officials said that the incident happened near Farsi Island, situated in the middle of the Persian Gulf.
“We have been in contact with Iran and have received assurances that the crew and the vessels will be returned promptly”, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told the Associated Press, adding that the ships were travelling between Kuwait and Bahrain when the Pentagon lost contact.
The IRGC, the Islamic Republic’s praetorian guard, is highly suspicious of USA military activity near Iran’s borders and many senior officers suspect Washington of pursuing regime change in Tehran.
Officials said the sailors were part of Riverine Squadron 1 based in San Diego and were deployed to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet in Bahrain.
Wagner, R-Ballwin, said that “I do not believe they would have been taken in the first place if we had sanctions in place”.
The U.S. Navy issued a statement Wednesday after Iranian state media announced the sailors had been freed.
The sailors departed the island at 0843 GMT aboard the boats they were detained with, the Navy said.
“After determining that their entry into Iran’s territorial waters was not intentional and their apology, the detained American sailors were released in worldwide waters”, a statement posted online by the Guard said Wednesday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif assured US Secretary of State John Kerry that the US sailors would be allowed to continue their journey promptly, another US official said.
Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, who frequently accuses the Obama administration of being weak on foreign policy, described the incident as “an indication of where the hell we’re going”.
Sky’s US Correspondent Amanda Walker said: “The nuclear deal is very significant in this and has been years of very meticulous negotiations”.
Martin pointed out this would seem a harmless incident except that two weeks ago, Iranian Revolutionary Guard ships fired off rockets within a mile of the American aircraft carrier U.S.S Truman.
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“The final order will be issued soon and they will probably be released”.
