Action of 13 June 1898 Action of 13 June 1898 The Action of 13 June 1898 was a minor naval engagement of the Spanish–American War fought near Cienfuegos, Cuba, between the American auxiliary cruiser USS "Yankee" under Commander Willard Herbert Brownson and the Spanish gunboat "Diego Velázquez" under Teniente de Navío de 1ª clase Juan de Carranza y Reguera, which had exited the port to inspect a suspicious steamer which proved to be "Yankee". "Diego Velázquez", markedly inferior to "Yankee" in armament, managed to return to Cienfuegos, where it was joined by the small gunboats "Lince" and "Cometa". After the appearance of the latters, "Yankee"
Sinking of the RMS Lusitania responsibility, entered the zone of operations." In the aftermath of the sinking, the German government tried to justify it by claiming in an official statement that she had been armed with guns, and had "large quantities of war material" in her cargo. They also stated that since she was classed as an auxiliary cruiser, Germany had had a right to destroy her regardless of any passengers aboard, and that the warnings issued by the German Embassy before her sailing plus 18 February note declaring the existence of "war zones", relieved Germany of any responsibility for the deaths of American citizens