US sends naval strike group to Middle East in ‘message’ to Iran

In this October 3, 2018 file photo, U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton answers questions from reporters during a news conference in the White House briefing room in Washington, U.S.  

The deployment also comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran over the latter's nuclear program, with the US taking aim at Iranian enriched uranium exports with sanctions.

The United States is sending an aircraft carrier strike group and a bomber task force to the Middle East in a "clear and unmistakable" message to Iran, National Security Advisor John Bolton said Sunday.

"In response to a number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings, the United States is deploying the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a bomber task force to the US Central Command region," Mr. Bolton said in a statement.

In this April 1, 2019, file photo, the USS Abraham Lincoln deploys from Naval Station Norfolk, in the vicinity of Norfolk, Virginia. The White House said Sunday, May 5, that the U.S. is deploying military resources to send a message to Iran. White House national security adviser John Bolton said in a statement that the U.S. is deploying the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a bomber task force to the U.S. Central Command region, an area that includes the Middle East.  

 

The deployment is aimed at sending "a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force," Mr. Bolton said.

"The United States is not seeking war with the Iranian regime, but we are fully prepared to respond to any attack, whether by proxy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or regular Iranian forces."

The statement did not specifically state why the deployment is taking place now, but it comes during a deadly escalation between Gaza-based Palestinian militants and Israel in which the two sides have traded a barrage of rocket fire and air strikes in recent days.

The deployment also comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran over the latter's nuclear program, with the US taking aim at Iranian enriched uranium exports with sanctions.