Context
Iran has warned US that its deployment of F-22 fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates last week will ‘endanger the region’s security’.
Earlier, Iran’s Defense Minister Amin Vahidi raised the same concern and said, “Such deployments in the region are both harmful and useless. They are mostly done to create a psychological trend and a sense of insecurity in the region.”
The US has deployed an unspecified number of F-22 fighter jets to the al-Dhafra Air Base in UAE. The news comes at a crucial time as US attempts to isolate Iran over its nuclear program. On the other hand, Iran’s border guards have initiated a naval drill along its southern Persian Gulf coast. The Iranian move has followed large-scale Israeli war game on its borders with Syria (Golan) and Lebanon.
Iran has also criticized UAE and Saudi Arabia for pumping more oil at a time when Iranian exports have been cut down by western sanctions. Meanwhile, Iran and UAE are locked in a heated row over the ownership of three islands that both countries claim. In December last year, the US had announced a $3.48 billion arms sale to the UAE to constitute missile defense batteries and radars
