Iran calls F-22 deployment in United Arab Emirates a US-Israeli ‘plot’

Iran has labeled the U.S. military’s decision last week to send F-22 Raptors to an air base in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) a “plot” by the United States and Israel to create regional instability.

Iranian Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi said Monday the move would undermine the security of the region, according to the semi-official FARS News Agency.

“We consider such (military) presence in the region as to be useless and harmful and more aimed at creating a psychological ploy and an insecure atmosphere in the region," Vahidi said on Al Alam TV network.

Iranian lawmaker Kazem Jalali said that putting the F-22 stealth fighters at the Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE was a U.S.-Israeli plot, which he was quoted as saying in Iran’s ISNA news agency, according to The Associated Press.

While a U.S. presence at the UAE base is nothing new, moving the F-22s into the Persian Gulf, which was first reported by Aviation Week on Thursday, could further escalate tensions between Tehran and Washington that have risen in recent months over Iran’s nuclear program.

Iran is currently in negotiations with six world powers, including the United States, about its nuclear program; talks are set to resume in Baghdad in May. But President Obama has said that all options are on the table, including a military strike, to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Israel has also hinted it could decide to attack Iran’s nuclear program if it does not feel the United States will do so in time.

The United States, Israel and their allies suspect Iran is seeking a nuclear weapon, while Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

Iran, of course, has been known for not following through on its tough rhetoric before. In December Tehran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf if the United States and European Union went through with economic sanctions.

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