TEHRAN, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Iran denied a U.S. Navy report that an Iranian drone flew close to a U.S. aircraft carrier in international waters in the Persian Gulf, local media reported Tuesday.
The missions of Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) patrolling drones are carried out within the territorial waters of the Islamic republic in the Persian Gulf, the IRGC said in a statement.
On Monday, a spokesman for the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command said an Iranian drone came within 300 meters of the USS Nimitz which was in international waters in the Persian Gulf.
A drone "conducted an unsafe and unprofessional approach" as it passed by the USS Nimitz without navigation lights, said Spokesman Lieut. Ian McConnaughey was quoted by western media as saying.
Controllers for the drone did not respond to radio requests for communications, he said.
The Iranian statement, however, said the IRGC drones, equipped with the naval standards, are controlled and guided precisely and professionally.
The U.S. Navy and the IRGC have so far had several encounters in the Persian Gulf, but nothing serious has followed.
On July 25, a U.S. navy official said the USS Thunderbolt fired warning shots at an Iranian patrol boat in the Persian Gulf, as it came within 150 yards (about 137 meters) in the northern end of the Persian Gulf.
The Iranian vessel did not respond to any warnings from the U.S. ship, including radio calls, firing of flares and five short blasts from the U.S. ship's whistle, the U.S. official said.
However, the IRGC dismissed the "allegations," saying the U.S. navy ship moved toward an Iranian patrolling boat in the northern part of the Persian Gulf and fired two warning shots in "a provocative and intimidating action."
