The 10 USA sailors “obviously had mis-navigated” before ending up as Iranian captives, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Thursday.
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The United States has thanked Iran for its prompt release of ten US sailors who had entered Iranian territorial waters by mistake.
The commander of the American crew told Iranian media that trespassing the Iranian waters, which led to their detention by Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy on Tuesday, was a “mistake”, for which he apologized.
Kirby said he wanted to give the sailors a chance to describe the circumstances of their capture, but said it was inappropriate for Iran to use the video of the sailors for propaganda purposes.
Of the soldier who apologized on camera, that was “not an official us government apology”, Toner said.
Kerry already had a phone call scheduled for 12:45 p.m. with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to talk about the nuclear deal.
“This administration’s craven desire to preserve the risky Iranian nuclear deal at all costs evidently knows no limits”, said John McCain. The U.S. Navy informed Iranian military vessels in the area they were coming in for a search-and-rescue, the official said.
Kerry, a former Navy officer, pressed Zarif on the need for Iran to release the Iranians “safely and unharmed and as quickly as possible”, the senior State Department official said.
“Iran and the USA have gone a long way in reducing tensions but still have a long way to go in improving their contacts”.
In contrast, US officials have said that there were no signs that the incident was a hostile one, and have not cited a specific cause for the boat straying into Iranian waters.
James Stavridis, a retired US admiral and former North Atlantic Treaty Organisation supreme commander, said Iran had “humiliated” the Americans on camera.
“Iran is testing the boundaries of this administration’s resolve”, Republican presidential hopeful Marco Rubio said.
Both boats were returned to the US, and the Navy does not believe the Iranians removed any gear or weapons, the official said.
The U.S. Central Command later said the “video appears to be authentic but we can not speak to the conditions of the situation or what the crew was experiencing at the time”.
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. “And I’m appreciative for the quick and appropriate response of the Iranian authorities”, Kerry said.
The White House told reporters Thursday that President Barack Obama had seen the images of the detained sailors.
Still, many questions about the incident remained unanswered, including what precisely led the sailors off-course and how they did not realise they were in danger before being detained by Iran.
The incident “underscores the value of responsible, mature leadership”, Earnest said.
“That this issue was resolved peacefully and efficiently is a testament to the critical role diplomacy plays in keeping our country safe, secure, and strong”, Kerry said.
Carter’s comments were the most detailed from American officials on the incident, which rattled nerves just before the expected implementation of a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
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But when they got so close to Farsi Island, and were approached by the Iranians, it is believed the USA boats could not rapidly get out of way because of that engine trouble.
