Vice President Dick Cheney has issued a new warning to Iran. Speaking aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier off the United Arab Emirates, Cheney said the U.S. military presence in the Gulf region should send a strong message.

Vice President Dick Cheney: “We’ll keep the sea lanes open. We’ll stand with our friends in opposing extremism and strategic threats. We’ll disrupt attacks on our own forces. We’ll continue bringing relief to those who suffer and delivering justice to the enemies of freedom. And we’ll stand with others to prevent Iran from gaining nuclear weapons and dominating this region.”

Cheney spoke just one day before the U.S. and Iran announced plans to meet in Baghdad in the next few weeks. The talks would mark the highest-level publicly acknowledged contact between the two sides in years.