The US Navy is expanding its warship presence in and around the Middle East, with a second carrier strike group moving toward the region amid heightened tensions with Iran, a report by Business Insider said.
According to a defense official, there are currently 10 warships and an aircraft carrier positioned within the Central Command area of responsibility, along with two additional vessels on the outskirts of the region. The buildup comes as the Trump administration increases pressure on Iran to agree to a deal limiting its nuclear and military capabilities.
Carrier strike groups deployed
A significant portion of the naval force is operating in the Arabian Sea. This includes the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its strike group, comprising the guided-missile destroyers USS Spruance, USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., and USS Michael Murphy.
The Lincoln carries dozens of aircraft, including fighter jets, electronic attack aircraft, and early warning planes. Among its air wing are F-35 stealth fighters, while its escorting destroyers are equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles.
Three additional destroyers — USS Mitscher, USS McFaul, and USS Pinckney — are also operating in the Arabian Sea. Pinckney arrived in the region in recent days, reports said.
Another destroyer, USS Delbert D. Black, is currently in the Red Sea. In the Arabian Gulf, three littoral combat ships — USS Santa Barbara, USS Tulsa, and USS Canberra — are deployed for near-shore operations.
European waters and redeployment
In the Eastern Mediterranean, two destroyers capable of ballistic missile defense — USS Roosevelt and USS Bulkeley — are operating under US Naval Forces Europe and Africa.
The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and its strike group — USS Mahan, USS Winston S. Churchill, and USS Bainbridge — are also operating under that command. The Ford, previously deployed in the Caribbean for several months, was recently redirected toward the Middle East. As of Wednesday, ship-tracking data showed it operating off the coast of Morocco near the Strait of Gibraltar.
Two more destroyers — USS Thomas Hudner and USS Stockdale — have shifted from the Caribbean to the US Naval Forces Europe and Africa area of responsibility.
Reduced presence in the Caribbean
The redeployment has significantly reduced the Navy’s footprint in the Caribbean, which falls under Southern Command. The US military had earlier stationed a large number of vessels near Venezuela as part of President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign against Nicolás Maduro.
Earlier this year, about a dozen warships were present in the Caribbean. That number has now dropped to five, the defense official said. The remaining ships include the cruiser USS Lake Erie, the destroyer USS Truxtun, the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima, and the amphibious transport dock ships USS Fort Lauderdale and USS San Antonio.
Tensions with Iran
The military buildup coincides with indirect talks between the US and Iran earlier this week. While officials suggested that further dialogue may follow, American military assets — including fighter jets and refueling aircraft — continue to move into and toward the Middle East.
Trump has previously threatened to strike Iran again following last year’s US bombing of Iranian nuclear sites under Operation Midnight Hammer.
Iran, for its part, conducted military exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz this week and warned that it is capable of targeting US warships in the event of a confrontation.
