Iran state media on Tuesday said the country’s military fired live missiles toward the Strait of Hormuz, just as Tehran and the U.S. held its second round of talks about the Middle Eastern nation’s nuclear program.

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,

Iran has been joined by Russia and China in deploying naval vessels for a joint live-fire exercise in the Strait

Iranian naval forces began military exercises Monday in the strategic waterway of the Strait of Hormuz, the day before a second round of talks with the United States for a nuclear deal amid