AdSense Advertisement

Iran’s Khamenei warns US carriers could “sink” as nuclear talks begin in Geneva

By The South Asia Times

TEHRAN - Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei issued stark warnings to the United States on Tuesday, saying Washington’s deployments of aircraft carriers near Iranian waters could face peril as indirect nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington resumed.

The remarks come at a moment of heightened tension, with both sides balancing hardline rhetoric and diplomatic engagement.

Khamenei rebuked recent US military posturing, dismissing President Donald Trump’s boasts and the US Navy’s carrier deployments as insufficient to topple the Islamic Republic after 47 years.

He suggested that Iran possesses “tools more dangerous than warships,” a veiled reference to its missile and asymmetrical warfare capabilities, officials and observers said.

The United States has stationed the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group in the Arabian Sea, and the USS Gerald R. Ford is en route to join it, in what Washington describes as a deterrence measure amid the talks.

Meanwhile, Tehran has staged military drills in the Strait of Hormuz, including missile and drone exercises by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reinforcing its defensive posture.

The indirect negotiations, mediated by Oman and held in Geneva, focus on Iran’s nuclear programme following earlier military escalations and months of mistrust. US envoys, including Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, are taking part, while Iran’s delegation stresses its right to enrichment and demands sanctions relief.

Both sides have framed the military deployments as a backdrop to diplomacy -- the US portrays its naval presence as “peace through strength,” while Iran insists it will defend its sovereign interests.

As talks proceed, analysts warn that the delicate negotiations could be jeopardized by continued military brinkmanship