U.S. downs Iranian drone near carrier
Incident comes as nuclear talks plans remain in flux
The U.S. military shot down an Iranian drone that "aggressively" approached the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, the U.S. military said.
The Iranian Shahed-139 drone was flying toward the carrier "with unclear intent" and was shot down by an F-35 U.S. fighter jet, the U.S. military said.
Fars News Agency carried the report, identifying the primary mission of surveillance drones of the type as monitoring all military movements in areas adjacent to the Islamic Republic, adding that data from these aircraft is transmitted to and received by ground bases in real-time.
The incident came as diplomats sought to arrange nuclear talks between Iran and the United States, and U.S. President Donald Trump warned that with U.S. warships heading toward Iran, "bad things" would probably happen if a deal could not be reached.
The political sources clarified that contacts are "still ongoing regarding finalizing the format and venue of the negotiations."
Earlier, two sources familiar with the matter also told Axios that Iran has requested changes to both the venue and format for negotiations with the United States this Friday, raising concerns that the adjustments could affect the diplomatic process at a time when President Donald Trump has already assembled enormous firepower in the Persian Gulf.
According to Axios, Iran is seeking adjustments to the format and venue of the talks, proposing that discussions be held in Oman rather than Istanbul, and favoring a bilateral framework with the United States. The proposal comes after several Arab and Muslim countries had been invited to attend the talks as observers.
President Donald Trump's administration agreed to Iranian request to move the talks from Turkey and negotiations are still ongoing about whether Arab and Muslim countries from the region will join the talks in Oman.
