Bolton warns Iran: Any attack in the Persian Gulf will be met with a "decisive response" from the US
President Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, warned Iran that any attack in the Persian Gulf would be met with a "decisive response" from the United States.
According to the Associated Press, Bolton, who traveled to the UAE, said: "The goal is to make it clear to Iran and its proxies in the region that taking such actions risks a decisive response from the United States."
The White House National Security Advisor said yesterday in the UAE that the attack on commercial ships in the waters of the Port of Fujairah was "almost certainly" caused by Iranian naval mines.
John Bolton also added that the attack on commercial ships in Fujairah was linked to the Houthi drone attack on Saudi Arabia's oil pipelines and the firing of a missile into Baghdad's Green Zone near the US embassy.
President Trump's national security adviser has traveled to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, for a new round of talks with Arab leaders. Bolton's presence comes ahead of several emergency meetings of Gulf and Arab states on the actions and threats of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Tensions between the Islamic Republic and the United States have escalated over the past month, with U.S. officials saying they have intelligence that suggests the threat from Iran is more serious than in the past.
In mid-May, four ships were sabotaged in the UAE port of Fujairah, and then Saudi oil facilities were attacked. Unlike the sabotage in Fujairah, whose perpetrators remained a matter of speculation, the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack on Saudi oil facilities.
On Sunday evening, May 10, local time, Iraq announced that a rocket fired towards the heavily fortified "Green Zone" in Baghdad hit near the US embassy.
The United States says it has increased its naval and air combat forces in the Persian Gulf in preparation for a possible attack by Iran or its proxies on American interests and its allies.
The United States has strengthened its military posture in the region by sending the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and B-52 bombers to the Middle East in response to what it says are worrying signs of Iran's possible intent and preparation to attack American positions and forces.
Source: Voice of America
