Iran's activity at sea 'cautious' and 'respectful,' U.S. admiral says

Tensions between the United States and Iran remain high, and the future of the relationship between the two countries is unclear amid the presidential transition, but things are looking calm at sea for the moment, The Associated Press reports.

Vice Adm. Sam Paparo, the top U.S. Navy official in the Middle East who oversees the 5th fleet in Bahrain, said Sunday that the U.S. has "achieved an uneasy deterrence" with Iran in the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Arabian Sea, where both navies operate. "That uneasy deterrence is exacerbated by world events and by events along the way," he said at the annual Manama Dialogue hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "But I have found Iranian activity at sea to be cautious and circumspect and respectful, to not risk unnecessary miscalculation or escalation at sea."

Iran over the last few years has seized or attacked tankers at sea, but Paparo suggested those actions look like they're on the way out, a markedly different view from his predecessor Vice Adm. James Mallow, who told journalists in August that Iran's maritime activites were "reckless and provocative." Read more at The Associated Press.

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