An Iranian defense ministry official has issued a threat to the US amidst its rising military presence in the Persian Gulf.
Referring to Iran's latest long-range missile, which has a range of 1,000 kilometers, Reza Talaei-Nik, the Spokesman of the Ministry of Defense, said: "The enemies should move away from the country's coasts within the range of the Abu Mahdi missile, and those who intend to create insecurity in the region should change their mind."
Thousands of Marines backed by advanced US fighter jets and warships are building up a greater presence in the Persian Gulf in the face of Iran's harassment of commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf.
The dispatch of the troop-and- the USS Bataan expeditionary unit to the region, alongside stealth F-35 fighters and other warplanes, has put the regime on the back foot.
Talaei-Nik warned that those who want to pose a threat should withdraw beyond the 1000-kilometer range of Abu Mahdi sea cruise missiles that "can evade radar."
The Abu Mahdi missile, made in Iran, can reach the entire Persian Gulf Sea, the Sea of Oman, and a portion of the Indian Ocean, according to Talaei-Nik.
Earlier Iran’s Defense Minister, Mohammad Reza Ashtiani hailed the addition of the Abu Mahdi missile to Iran's naval fleet claiming that the missile system's advanced artificial intelligence capabilities enables it to adeptly evade radar systems.