US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned Iran on April 30 that it will face consequences for supporting the Houthis, even as the United States has re-launched talks with the country over its nuclear programme.
“Message to Iran: We see your Lethal support to the Houthis. We know exactly what you are doing,” Hegseth wrote on social media platform X, adding “You know very well what the US Military is capable of – and you were warned. You will pay the consequence at the time and place of our choosing.”
Hegseth, on his personal X account, later reposted a Trump message on Truth Social from March in which the US President said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks carried out by the Houthi group.
The United States and Iran have so far held three rounds of indirect talks, mediated by Oman, aimed at sealing a deal that would block Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon but also lift crippling economic sanctions imposed by Washington. The two sides will reconvene in Rome on May 3.
The US has carried out strikes against more than 1,000 targets since it ramped up strikes against the group in March.
The US military has boosted assets in recent weeks to reinforce the Middle East. The Pentagon has deployed six B-2 bombers to the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia – which experts say is an ideal position to operate in the Middle East.
Additionally, the US currently has two aircraft carriers in the Middle East and has moved air defense systems from Asia to the region.
While both Tehran and Washington have said they are set on pursuing diplomacy, they remain far apart on a dispute that has rumbled on for more than two decades.
Mr Trump, in an interview with Time magazine earlier in April, said, “I think we’re going to make a deal with Iran”, but he repeated a threat of military action against Iran if diplomacy fails.