(VOVWORLD) - US forces shot down an Iranian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) approaching the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea, the White House said Tuesday.
US officials said the drone, identified as a Shahed, was flying toward the aircraft carrier and was downed by an F-35 Lightning II fighter jet after it neared the carrier strike group.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency said contact with the drone had been lost while it was operating in international waters, adding that the cause of the signal loss had not been determined. Iranian media said the UAV was carrying out a “surveillance mission” and did not confirm that it had been shot down.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said talks between Washington and Tehran scheduled for later this week will proceed as planned.
President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, US special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi are expected to take part in the negotiations. Iran is seeking to hold the talks in Oman rather than Turkey and wants the scope of the discussions limited to bilateral nuclear issues.