Amid rising Iran tensions, 2nd US aircraft carrier is being sent to Middle East
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Photo: AP
Washington: According to a person familiar with the plans, the United States would send the world's largest aircraft carrier to the Middle East to back up another that is already there, throwing greater American firepower behind US President Donald Trump's efforts to compel Iran into a nuclear deal.
The anticipated deployment of the USS Gerald R Ford to the Middle East comes just days after Trump hinted at another round of talks with Iran. Those talks did not materialise after one of Tehran's senior security officials visited Oman and Qatar this week and exchanged communications with US mediators. Already, Gulf Arab governments have warned that any attack might spark another regional crisis in the Middle East, which is still recovering from Israel's battle with Hamas in Gaza, AP reported
Meanwhile, Iranians have started to attend 40-day mourning ceremonies for the hundreds slain in Tehran's brutal crackdown on statewide protests last month, adding to the Islamic Republic's internal pressure under sanctions.
The Ford's deployment, initially reported by The New York Times, will bring two carriers and their supporting warships to the region.
The USS Abraham Lincoln is already in the Arabian Sea, accompanied by guided-missile destroyers. The individual who talked with The Associated Press about the deployment requested anonymity in order to discuss military movements.
