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John Kirby News

19 Jan 2024

US Strikes Three Houthi Anti-Ship Missiles

The guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely (DDG 107) launches Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles in response to increased Iranian-backed Houthi malign behavior in the Red Sea Jan. 12, 2024. (Source: US Navy)

U.S. Central Command forces on Friday conducted strikes against three Houthi anti-ship missiles that were aimed into the Southern Red Sea and were prepared to launch, the U.S. military said on X, formerly called Twitter."U.S. forces identified the missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined that they presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and the U.S. Navy ships in the region. U.S. forces subsequently struck and destroyed the missiles in self-defense," the U.S.

11 Jan 2024

Iran Confirms Seizure of Oil Tanker Involved in US-Iran Dispute

© evannovostro / Adobe Stock

Iran seized a tanker with Iraqi crude destined for Turkey on Thursday in retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its oil by the U.S., Iranian state media reported, a move likely to stoke regional tensions.The seizure of the Marshall Islands-flagged St Nikolas coincides with weeks of attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militias targeting Red Sea shipping routes."After the theft of Iranian oil by the United States last year, St Nikolas tanker was seized by Iran's Navy this morning with a judicial order ...

31 Dec 2023

US Sinks 3 Ships, Kills 10 After Houthi Red Sea Attack

(Photo: U.S. Navy)

U.S. helicopters repelled an attack by Iran-backed Houthi militants on a Maersk container vessel in the Red Sea, sinking three ships and killing 10 militants, according to accounts by American, Maersk, and Houthi officials on Sunday.The naval battle occurred around 0330 GMT on Sunday as the attackers sought to board the Singapore-flagged Maersk Hangzhou, Maersk and U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Helicopters from the USS Eisenhower and USS Gravely joined the ship's security team in repelling the attackers after receiving a distress call


19 Dec 2023

Attacks on Ships in Red Sea Must Stop, White House Says

© Robert Peak / Adobe Stock

Attacks by Iran-backed Yemeni militants in the Red Sea must stop and the U.S. and its partners will continue to protect ships from being targeted, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday.The Houthi militant group, which controls vast amounts of territory in Yemen after years of war, has since last month fired drones and missiles at international vessels sailing through the Red Sea, attacks it says respond to Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip."Attacks on ships in the Red Sea have to stop


22 Nov 2023

US Reviewing Possible 'Terrorist' Designations for Houthis Following Ship Seizure

(Photo: Screenshot from video shared by Yemeni Armed Forces)

The United States is reviewing "potential terrorist designations" for Yemen's Houthi rebel group in response to its seizure of a cargo ship, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Tuesday.Kirby's comment was significant because one of the Biden administration's first acts after taking office in January 2021 was revoking terrorist designations of the Houthis over fears the sanctions they carried could worsen Yemen's humanitarian crisis.The Iran-backed Houthis


12 May 2023

US to Bolster Defensive Posture to Protect Gulf Shipping

© sghiaseddin / Adobe Stock

Iran has increased its attacks on commercial shipping in recent months and the Pentagon will begin to bolster defensive posture in the region on Friday, White House spokesperson John Kirby said.In the past two years, Iran has harassed, attacked or interfered with the navigational rights of 15 internationally flagged commercial vessels, Kirby said."Today, the Department of Defense will be making a series of moves to bolster our defensive posture in the Arabian Gulf," Kirby told reporters in a briefing.Kirby said U.S Central Command will provide details in coming days. The U.S.

07 Mar 2023

New Intelligence Points to Pro-Ukraine Group in Nord Stream Attack

(Photo: Danish Defense)

New intelligence reviewed by U.S. officials suggests that a pro-Ukraine group - likely comprised of Ukrainians or Russians - attacked the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September, but there are no firm conclusions, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.There was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy or other Ukrainian government officials were behind the attacks which spewed natural gas into the Baltic Sea, the newspaper reported, citing U.S. officials.Reuters could not independently verify the report.The Sept.

31 Aug 2022

US Looking to Increase Gas Products Into Europe Amid Russia Cuts

© Mike Mareen / Adobe Stock

The United States will keep looking for ways to increase gas products going into Europe in the face of Russian energy cuts after its invasion of Ukraine, the White House said on Wednesday."President Putin again is weaponizing energy," White House national security spokesman John Kirby said at a news briefing.(Reuters - Reporting by Jeff Mason and Doina Chiacu;)

29 Aug 2022

US Warships Transit Taiwan Strait, First Since Pelosi Visit

Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) (Photo: Santiago Navarro / U.S. Navy)

Two U.S. Navy warships sailed through international waters in the Taiwan Strait on Sunday, the first such operation since a visit to Taiwan by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enraged China which regards the island as its territory.The U.S. Navy, confirming a Reuters report, said cruisers Chancellorsville and Antietam were carrying out the ongoing operation. Such operations usually take eight to 12 hours to complete and are closely monitored by China's military.In recent years, U.S.

10 May 2021

US Coast Guard Fires Warning Shots in Swarm of Iranian Vessels

FILE PHOTO: Island-class patrol boat USCGC Maui (WPB 1304). (Photo: Meleesa Gutierrez / U.S. Army)

A U.S. Coast Guard ship fired about 30 warning shots after 13 vessels from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came close to it and other American Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the Pentagon said on Monday.This is the second time within the last month that U.S. military vessels have had to fire warning shots because of what they said was unsafe behavior by Iranian vessels in the region, after a relative lull in such interactions over the past year.Pentagon


17 Sep 2016

U.S. meeting on ocean conservation nets $5.3 billion in pledges

International participants at a high-level conference on the world's oceans pledged more than $5.3 billion for conservation and designated vast areas as protected waters, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday. More than 90 countries took part in the two-day conference, the third of its kind, in an effort to galvanize attention to the dangers that pollution, climate change and over-fishing may pose to the world's oceans. "This ocean conference, in order to protect marine eco-systems, to prevent pollution, to address the crippling impacts of climate change, has committed over $5.3 billion of money and initiatives in order to achieve those goals," Kerry said at the meeting's closing session. Earlier, U.S.

12 Jul 2016

China Loses on South China Sea Ruling

The United States urged all parties to avoid provocative statements or actions after an arbitration court ruled on Tuesday that China has no historic title over the waters of the South China Sea. "The decision today by the Tribunal in the Philippines-China arbitration is an important contribution to the shared goal of a peaceful resolution to disputes in the South China Sea," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. The United States is still studying the decision and has no comment on the merits of the case but supports efforts to resolve South China territorial and maritime disputes peacefully, he said. The Permanent


25 Dec 2014

Standing by to Assist Santa

Pentagon Press Secretary, Rear Adm. John Kirby, recently held a press briefing where he discussed the specifics of how the Department of Defense is supporting Santa Claus’ yuletide journey as he delivers gifts around the world. The U.S. 6th Fleet is on high alert, focusing maritime assets on protecting the waters within its area of operations to ensure the Jolly Old Elf is able to complete his rounds as he, much like 6th Fleet ships, operates forward. “Our theater of operations extends from the seabed to space, from the North Pole to South Africa. If it flies, we can see it. If it floats, we can find it and if it’s submerged, we will hear it. – Vice Adm. James G. Foggo, III, Commander, U.S. “Oscar Austin reporting from the Indian Ocean, ensuring Maritime Santa Lanes remain open.

18 Aug 2014

'MV Cape Ray' Crew: Chemical Weapons Destruction Applauded

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) says it is proud to support the international effort to destroy Syrian chemical weapons and agents by providing the M/V CAPE RAY and its all-volunteer U.S. Merchant Marine crew to support this critical mission. One of MARAD’s 46 Ready Reserve Force (RRF) ships that stand ready to provide rapid movement of equipment and supplies during times of national and humanitarian emergencies, this vessel and its crew illustrate the important contribution our RRF ships and mariners make in supporting U.S. national and economic security. Since 1775, the U.S. In associated news, Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Adm. "This morning, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel called Navy Captain Rich Dromerhauser aboard the U.S.

25 Jun 2014

US Navy Ship En Route to Receive Syrian Chemical Weapons

MV Cape Ray (Official U.S. Navy file photo)

U.S. motor vessel Cape Ray departed Rota, Spain, this morning en route to the port of Gioia Tauro, Italy, where the ship will receive declared Syrian chemical weapons transferred from the Danish vessel Ark Futura, the U.S. Navy announced today in a press release. In a statement announcing the departure, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said the transit to Italy is expected to take several days. After the transfer is complete, the Cape Ray will depart Gioia Tauro


17 Jun 2014

SECNAV Orders Amphibious Transport Dock Ship to Gulf

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel today ordered the amphibious transport dock ship 'USS Mesa Verde' into the Arabian Gulf, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said. The ship has completed its transit through the Strait of Hormuz, the admiral said in a statement. "Its presence in the Gulf adds to that of other U.S. naval ships already there - including the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush - and provides the commander in chief additional options to protect American citizens and interests in Iraq, should he choose to use them," Kirby said. USS Mesa Verde is capable of conducting a variety of quick-reaction and crisis response operations, the press secretary said, and it carries a complement of MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.

17 Mar 2014

U.S. Forces Board Seized Tanker Ship

American forces yesterday boarded and took control of a commercial tanker ship, Morning Glory, that was seized earlier this month by three armed Libyans, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said in a Defense Department news release issued today. "No one was hurt tonight when U.S. forces, at the request of both the Libyan and Cypriot governments, boarded and took control of the commercial tanker ‘Morning Glory,’ a stateless vessel seized earlier this month by three armed Libyans,” Kirby said in the release. The boarding operation, approved by President Barack Obama and conducted just after 10 p.m. EDT on March 16 in international waters southeast of Cyprus, was executed by a team of U.S. Navy SEALs attached to Special Operations Command Europe, Kirby added.

24 Apr 2013

U.S. Navy Presents Shipbuilding Plan to Congress

The following statement has been issued by Rear Admiral John Kirby, Navy Chief of Information:‹ "Today we provided Congress information tables from our draft 30-year shipbuilding plan. We believe the information found in these tables clearly articulates our intention to modernize and grow the fleet to our required minimum of 306 ships. We have been upfront and transparent about the need to decommission older ships, while at the same time introducing new and more capable platforms. Both Secretary Mabus and Admiral Greenert have been clear about the need to further our success in shipbuilding. Indeed, under Secretary Mabus' leadership the Navy has put 43 new ships under contract. We look forward to working with the Congress to discuss the way forward."

12 Feb 2013

Navy's First JHSV Visits St. Petersburg

USNS Spearhead: Photo credit USN

Military Sealift Command's (MSC) joint high-speed vessel, USNS 'Spearhead' visits the Port of St. Petersburg, FLA. U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young, Mayor Bill Foster and other distinguished visitors from St. Petersburg joined Navy Chief of Information Rear Adm. John Kirby, Capt. Sam Norton, commander, MSC Atlantic, and Capt. Doug Casavant, the ship's civil service master, during an arrival ceremony in honor of the ship, its crew and the Navy. The three-day port call is primarily a working visit and an opportunity for senior officials and military personnel from U.S. Central Command and U.S.

29 Jan 2008

Guided-Missile Destroyer Dewey Christened

Mrs. Deborah Mullen, ships sponsor for the precommissioning unit Dewey (DDG 105) christens the newest Aegis-class destroyer, striking the traditional champagne bottle across the ship's bow at Northrop Grumman Systems Shipyard, Pascagoula, Miss., Jan. 26, 2008. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. By Fred W. The ship's freshly painted gray hull gave up only a hollow "clunk" as the bottle she gripped with both hands in baseball-bat fashion glanced off its edge.