US Dials Down Tension Over Warship Passage Through India's Exclusive Zone US Dials Down Tension Over Warship Passage Through India's Exclusive Zone John F Kirby, the Pentagon Press Secretary, has said that the Destroyer USS John Paul Jones conducted "innocent passage" through waters off the Maldives, indicating that military manoeuvres had not been carried out. New Delhi had expressed its concern to Washington. New Delhi: The United States has sought to dial down differences with India on the passage of a US warship through India's Exclusive Economic Zone in the Arabian Sea, which had taken place without New Delhi's permission on April 7.