The U.S. aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln sailed through the Strait of Hormuz near Iran for the second time in several weeks, according to reporters onboard the vessel.
Reporters with the BBC, The Associated Press, and Reuters were aboard the ship. AP said an Iranian patrol boat passed within two miles of the carrier, which was accompanied by a U.S. destroyer and cruiser. Officers onboard the ship said there were no incidents.
Iran has threatened to close down the strait after heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran over its disputed nuclear program. The United States and the European Union have imposed more sanctions on Iran and are pressing other countries to do the same.
“If you listen to the (Iranian) rhetoric ... you might think that there are some tensions,” Adm. Troy Shoemaker, Carrier Strike Group 9 commander, told Reuters.
He added, “I think we are conducting the transit as part of our normal business ... Our intention is to keep it professional and routine.”
