Report: UK warship aborts Navy mission to Persian Gulf

LONDON – The Times newspaper says the Royal Navy has cut short a mission to the Persian Gulf region because of the breakdown of one of its most advanced warships.

The newspaper said Thursday that the highly sophisticated HMS Diamond is returning to Britain because of a propeller problem that could not be fixed at sea.

The Royal Navy said in a statement that the destroyer has experienced technical issues. The statement said the Navy would not provide specifics because it could not discuss “the detailed material state of our operational ships.”

HMS Diamond is one of the Royal Navy’s six Type 45 destroyers. The Navy says it is “ready to detect and destroy any airborne, surface and subsurface threat.”

The Royal Navy has patrolled the Gulf since 1980.