NEW YORK, Nov 9: Iran's defence minister accused the United States on Friday of having violated Iranian airspace last week and its plane was fired upon and forced to retreat. But Pentagon says the pilotless vehicle which came under fire was over international waters.

“Last week, an unknown aircraft entered Iran's airspace in the Persian Gulf,” Gen Ahmad Vahidi said. “It was forced to leave on time by a wise and strong reaction on the part of the Iranian armed forces.”

Vahidi's remarks came a day after the Pentagon said an Iranian military plane fired on — at least twice — but did not hit, an unarmed US drone a week ago. A Pentagon spokesman said the pilotless aircraft was in international airspace over the Gulf and returned to base unharmed.

The shooting, which occurred on Nov 1, was unprecedented, though it marked the second incident involving a US drone and Iran.

Last December, a US RQ-170 Sentinel drone equipped with stealth technology was captured in eastern Iran. Tehran claims it brought down the aircraft, but US officials said the drone malfunctioned and had to land.