Six nations will participate in naval maneuvers in the Gulf, near Iran, designed to stop nuclear proliferation, a high-ranking US State Department official said on Friday.
On Monday, Australia, Bahrain, Britain, France, Italy and the United States will participate as part of an 80-nation Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), the official told journalists on condition of anonymity.
The exercise will simulate inspection of a "target vessel carrying materials useful to a nuclear weapon program," destined for a "country of proliferation concern in the region," the source said, without mentioning Iran.