The naval exercises, which included missiles, warships and helicopters, are testing the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) “ operational readiness ” and plans for reciprocal action in case of “potential security and military threats”.

US Iran tensions highlights: Parand fire department told state media that the black smoke was due to a fire in the reeds around the Parand river bank.

The White House warned on Wednesday that Iran would be "wise" to do a deal with the United States as President Donald Trump once again hinted at military action."Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump and with his administration,

Axios has reported, citing sources, that the United States is allegedly very close to deciding on a large-scale military operation against Iran, which could begin in the near future.

The talks come as the U.S. ramps up its military presence in the Middle East and Iran holds large-scale maritime exercises.

The second round of U.S.-Iran talks ended with a pledge to continue talking, but both sides are ramping up their military forces.

By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali WASHINGTON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. military is preparing for the possibility of sustained, weeks-long operations against Iran if President Donald Trump orders an attack,

The US military is continuing a significant buildup of air and naval assets in the Middle East as negotiations over a deal with Iran continued with talks in Geneva on Tuesday. The pieces are being moved into place both to pressure Tehran as terms of a deal are discussed and to have options to strike inside the country should negotiations over its nuclear program fail,