Iran's Guards Commander Says US Aircraft Carrier No Longer Threat, Now Constitutes Target

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th May, 2019) The US aircraft carrier sent to the middle East does not pose a threat to Iran and now represents only a target, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh said on Sunday.

The United States said earlier in the month that it was deploying USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a bomber task force near Iran to an area controlled by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) to send "a clear and unmistakable message" to Tehran.

"An aircraft carrier, which has at least 40-50 planes and 6,000 servicemen on board, was a serious threat for us in the past but now it is a target, and the threats have turned into opportunities," Hajizadeh told the Iranian Students' news Agency (ISNA).

Tensions have been running high between Iran and the United States since last May, when US President Donald Trump, a long-time critic of the historic Iran nuclear deal, pulled out of the agreement. In less than a year, Washington unveiled several rounds of sanctions against the Islamic republic, targeting the country's finance, transport, military and other spheres.

Tehran informed earlier in the week the ambassadors of China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom of its decision to suspend some of its obligations under the nuclear deal. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced that he gave European countries 60 days to ensure that Iran's interests were protected under the agreement.�