Iranian harassment of US ships prompts military reaction, increasing already-strained tensions between the two countries.

The U.S. Navy shot down an Iranian drone that flew toward a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, U.S. Central Command said.

The US Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its escort ships have been moved toward the Middle East in response to rising tensions with Tehran, underlining the classic contest between an “armada” that projects conventional power and a “swarm” of lower-cost asymmetric options Iran favours.

The US military accused Iran of "unnecessary aggression" after shooting down an Iranian drone near the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea and IRGC vessels approached a US-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz ahead of US-Iran talks later this week.

The destroyer departed from Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, for what the service called a scheduled deployment.

Iranian gunboats unsuccessfully attempted to intercept a US oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday before a US Navy vessel intervened, reports say.

Chell said Iran’s advantage is volume and cost rather than sophistication, pairing inexpensive warheads with cheap delivery platforms launched in large numbers. Iran’s growing use of swarming, low-cost one-way drones presents a credible threat to high-value US naval vessels,

St. Nikolas ship X1 oil tanker involved in U.S.-Iran dispute in the Gulf of Oman, which state media says was seized, is seen in the Tokyo bay, Japan, Oct. 4, 2020, in this handout picture. automation LONDON -- An oil tanker was seized by the Iranian navy ...