By Swift Reporter
Iran’s supreme leader has threatened to sink US aircraft carriers to the “bottom of the sea”, after the second round of nuclear talks between the two countries concluded in Geneva.
Ali Khamenei was unnerved by the rapid build-up of American military forces in the Persian Gulf, sent by Donald Trump to pressure the Islamic Republic into a new nuclear deal.
“They constantly say we have sent an aircraft carrier towards Iran,” Mr Khamenei said.
Iranian state media reported on Tuesday that parts of the Strait of Hormuz would close for several hours, the first time the commercial shipping route would be blocked since the 1980s.
The increased tension comes as Iran’s foreign minister met with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Geneva for a fresh round of nuclear negotiations.
Iran’s Islamic rulers are looking for a show of strength after being divided over the Geneva talks and weakened by January’s nationwide protests, which saw thousands killed.
Mr Khamenei’s public threats may act as political cover for the compromises his team are set to make in the negotiations with the US, including limits on Iran’s nuclear programme.
Israel is also pressurising the White House to put limits on Iranian ballistic missile stocks, as well as its sponsorship of terrorist groups, alongside the nuclear issue.
Both Iran and the US expressed positive signs of a deal after the initial round of discussions took place in Oman 10 days ago.
Despite the promising signals, Mr Trump has continued to threaten Iran with military action.
The US president recently sent the Ford, the largest warship in the world, to join America’s flagship carrier the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East.
The combined force would allow the US to prosecute a sustained campaign of air strikes on Iran.
Israeli officials want Mr Trump to topple the regime, but analysts are sceptical that this can be achieved from the air alone.
On Monday the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched cruise missiles in the Strait of Hormuz as part of a maritime drill.
The waterway close to the US fleet was temporarily closed for several hours during the live-fire naval exercises, which were broadcast on state television and took place
Iran has never fully closed the Strait of Hormuz, though it has repeatedly threatened to do so and taken actions which have disrupted shipping through it.
Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, admitted on Monday that reaching a deal with Tehran would be “very difficult”.
Speaking during a visit to Hungary, Mr Rubio said: “I think that there’s an opportunity here to diplomatically reach an agreement … but I don’t want to overstate it either. It’s going to be hard.”
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