The US Navy has dispatched a destroyer after Iranian military fired warning shots at and captured a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo ship traveling through the Persian Gulf on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Pentagon.

Iranian troops scaled the boat and ordered the captain to move towards the country's mainland, a move that came after the forces directed the MV Maersk Tigris to direct itself deeper into Iran-controlled water. The captain of the vessel, which reportedly has 34 people on board, ultimately obeyed orders after they fired warning shots.

Multiple patrol boats operated by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards reportedly headed off the ship as it navigated the waters in the Straight of Hormuz, citing the vessel for trespassing into the Islamic Republic's waters, according to the New York Times.

A distress signal put out by the ship triggered the response from the US Navy to dispatch its destroyer, the Farragut. There are reportedly no Americans on board the cargo ship, while Iranian television said that the crew members hailed from countries including Bulgaria, Romania, and Myanmar.

The boat has been directed towards an island off Bandar Abbas, a major base for both Iran's navy and revolutionary guard.

The incident comes just weeks after Iranian officials and six world powers — the US, UK, Germany, France, China, and Russia — worked out a path towards a framework agreement regulating the country's nuclear program. With the progress still fresh, relations remain on shaky ground between Tehran and Washington as the countries have yet to work out a final deal.