DUBAI - At least one Indian fisherman was killed and three others wounded after a US military ship fired Monday at a small boat off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the latter "ignored the warnings and came too close", sources said.

The USNS Rappahannock, a fuel resupply ship, fired upon a small motor vessel after it disregarded warnings and rapidly approached the US ship near Jebel Ali, Dubai, according to a statement of the US navy's Bahrain-based fifth fleet.

Sailors on the USNS Rappahannock used a series of non-lethal, preplanned responses to warn the vessel's operators to turn away from their "deliberate" approach before resorting to lethal force, the statement said.

Dr Tariq Ahmed Al Haidan, assistant to UAE foreign minister for political affairs, said an Indian fisherman was killed and three others, also Indians, were seriously injured.

"The UAE concerned authorities are investigating the shooting incident," he was quoted by UAE's state news agency WAM as saying.

Jebel Ali port, the largest port in the Middle East, is frequently visited by the ships of the US navy as a rest port for sailors.