Tehran: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned on Tuesday, February 17, that United States (US) warships deployed to Gulf “could be sunk to the bottom of the sea”, as tensions mounted alongside live-fire military exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz and the resumption of nuclear talks.

Speaking at an event in Tehran, Khamenei said even the world’s most powerful military could face setbacks. “The strongest army in the world may receive a slap it cannot recover from,” he said, referring to US President Donald Trump’s repeated assertion that Washington commands the world’s strongest armed forces.

“They keep saying that we sent a warship toward Iran. Very well, a warship is indeed a dangerous machine, but more dangerous than a warship is the weapon that can sink it to the bottom of the sea,” he added.

The remarks came as Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps conducted live-fire drills in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy corridor through which around one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments pass. Iranian military media released footage simulating strikes on a US aircraft carrier during the exercises.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced temporary restrictions in parts of the waterway as a precaution to ensure navigational safety during the manoeuvres, according to Fars News Agency.

The Strait of Hormuz carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. Tehran has repeatedly warned it could disrupt traffic through the waterway if it faces military action.

The developments coincided with the second round of indirect negotiations between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s nuclear programme, which began in Geneva on Tuesday.

On Monday, February 16, Trump said he would take part “indirectly” in the talks and expressed confidence that Iran wanted to reach an agreement. He also confirmed that Washington had deployed a second aircraft carrier to the region to reinforce the Abraham Lincoln already operating in Gulf waters.