Donald Trump warned Tehran about an imminent attack as retaliation for a downed US drone, also giving “limited” time to respond, Reuters says. Trump reportedly ordered the strikes, but then pulled back.
The US president “gave a short period of time to get our response but Iran’s immediate response was that it is up to Supreme Leader [Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei to decide about this issue,” an Iranian official told the news agency.
Also on rt.com Iran releases VIDEO of US drone shoot-downTrump apparently also claimed he was not eager to start a war, but wanted to talk over “various issues” with Tehran.
Trump abruptly called off military strikes against Iran after approving them in response to Iran shooting down a US drone earlier this week, several media outlets, reported on June, 20.
The operation was already underway with ships moving to their positions and combat aircraft taking off. However, not a single missile had been fired when the order came to pull back, a senior administration official told the New York Times.
The drone in question was downed by an Iranian surface-to-air missile earlier this week over the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran maintains the American unmanned aircraft violated its airspace while US Central Command (CENTCOM) deemed the incident an “unprovoked attack” and denied that the drone was flying over Iran at the time of the strike.
Meanwhile, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Revolutionary Guard’s aerospace division, told state TV that Iranian forces had sent several warning signals to the US drone before firing a missile at it. “Unfortunately, they did not answer,” the General added.
READ MORE: US war on Iran could cause ‘disaster’ in Middle East – Moscow
Fear of the US starting an all-out war against Iran has existed for some time. The Pentagon deployed additional forces to the region, including long-range bombers and a carrier strike group, just as the White House ratcheted up rhetoric against Tehran.
Trump himself has recently said he would strike Iran over its nuclear program despite warnings that such an attack could trigger a major crisis in the Middle East.
Moscow has long opposed US intervention plans, urging Washington to stop “before it’s too late.” President Vladimir Putin, for his part, recently warned that a potential US strike could trigger “a disaster in the region.”