Iran warns US: Wherever you are, we are right next to you - Middle East

Amid tensions in the Gulf, Iran's Revolutionary Guards warn the United States against its naval presence in the region.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Thursday warned the United States against its naval presence in the Gulf as they received 110 new combat vessels, AFP reported.

The vessels included Ashura-class speedboats, Zolfaghar coastal patrol boats and Taregh submarines.

"We announce today that wherever the Americans are, we are right next to them, and they will feel our presence even more in the near future," the Guards' navy chief Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri was quoted as having said during a ceremony in southern Iran.

"Advancing while remaining defensive is the nature of our work," added Guards commander Major General Hossein Salami.

"But this does not equal passivity against the enemy," he stressed, noting that Iran "will not bow down to any foe."

According to Salami, the Guards' navy had been instructed to expand Iran's naval power until it can adequately defend "territorial independence and integrity, protect naval interests and pursue and destroy the enemy".

The comments come amid continued tensions between the US and Iran. Last week, the US Navy issued a warning to mariners in the Gulf to stay 100 meters away from US warships or risk being “interpreted as a threat and subject to lawful defensive measures”.

While no mention was made of Iran in the notice, it follows US President Donald Trump’s threat last month to fire on any Iranian ships that harass Navy vessels.

Trump’s warning followed a tense encounter between US and Iranian ships in the Persian Gulf.

The US military said at the time that 11 Revolutionary Guards naval vessels from the Guards navy came close to US Navy and coast guard ships in the Gulf, calling the moves “dangerous and provocative”.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard acknowledged that the incident had taken place, but also claimed that it was American forces who sparked the incident.

Last week, Iran's top military commander warned that the Islamic Republic’s armed forces are monitoring US military movements in and far beyond the region and will respond to their threats against Iran's interests.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shavuot in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)