Iran downing of sophisticated US spy drone can be repeated: Khanzadi
The commander of the Iranian navy says the downing of an intruding American spy drone was a “crushing response” to the United States, warning that the Islamic Republic is always capable of repeating it.
“The enemy dispatched its most advanced, sophisticated and intelligent surveillance aircraft to the restricted zone, and everyone saw the downing of this unmanned aerial vehicle,” Rear-Admiral Hossein Khanzadi said on Monday.
"I assure you that this crushing response can be repeated again and again at all times, and the enemy knows this very well,” said the commander.
On Thursday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) shot down an intruding RQ-4A Global Hawk surveillance drone belonging to the US Navy over Iran's southern coastal province of Hormozgan.
The following day, the elite military force put onto display the wreckage of the American spy drone, which had been retrieved from Iran's territorial waters.
Iranian Foreign ministry spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mosuavi also echoed Admiral Khanzadi, telling reporters on Monday that Iran was always prepared to repel intrusions.
Referring to US President Donald Trump's remarks that he called off strikes against Iran shortly after the drone was shot down, Mousavi said: "What mattered for us was their drone's intrusion and our decisive response and we will always maintain our readiness."
He said Iran has made it clear that it will not launch a war against other countries but "this doesn't mean we should not respond to encroachments."
Iran has provided the map coordinates of the precise spot where the drone was shot. The US first denied that it had lost any drones only to acknowledge later on that one of its drones had been shot down.
It took the US even more time to produce any map coordinates, alleging that the drone had been targeted in international airspace.
Washington has been escalating tensions with Iran under President Donald Trump. Leading a signature policy of “maximum pressure,” the US quit a United Nations-ratified nuclear agreement between Iran and six world states. It then proceeded to restore the sanctions that had been lifted under the deal.
It has, in addition, sent an aircraft carrier strike group, a bomber task force, an amphibious assault ship, and some 1,500 more forces to the region.
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