Ford returning to the Middle East as tensions rise with Iran

By Sarah Roderick-Fitch
The Center Square

A second aircraft carrier is en route to the Middle East as tensions build with Iran, according to multiple reports.

The USS Gerald Ford, the newest and largest carrier in the fleet, is headed back to the Middle East after assisting with operations in the Caribbean, including Operation Absolute Resolve, which led to the capture of deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Mauro.

There was speculation that the USS George H.W. Bush could be deployed to the region, but it is completing pre-deployment workups off the Atlantic coast.

The USS Abraham Lincoln and its strike group are already deployed near Iran.

President Donald Trump met earlier this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, marking their seventh meeting since Trump took office over a year ago.

In a social media post after the meeting, the president urged diplomacy with Iran, following a Wednesday meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During an event at the White House Thursday, Trump told reporters he hopes a deal is made “quickly” with Iran, adding it could take a month.

Following the meeting with Netanyahu, Trump issued another stern warning to Iran if a deal has not been struck.

“If it cannot, we will just have to see what the outcome will be,” Trump wrote. “Last time Iran decided that they were better off not making a deal, and they were hit with Midnight Hammer – that did not work well for them. Hopefully this time they will be more reasonable and responsible.”

Talks between the U.S. and Iran have been ongoing in Oman since late last week. Tensions are growing.

Israel is reportedly concerned with not only Iran rebuilding its nuclear program, but also ballistic missiles and support for proxy groups, such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

While Trump won’t commit to whether the U.S. will strike Iran for the second time in less than a year, he continues to hurl threats at the Iranian regime, citing a large armada of American naval ships in the region, which has been growing.

Last week, the State Department warned Americans in the Islamic Republic to leave the country. Trump said Iran’s leadership “should be very worried” amid rumors that the talks had hit a snag; that was later rebuffed.

“I’m hearing that Iran wants to restart the new program,” Trump said in a network interview. “If that’s the case, we’ll send the forces to do the job again. They tried to go back to the site, but they couldn’t access it. We discovered that they wanted to open a nuclear site in another part of the country. I said, ‘You do that – we’ll do very bad things to you,’”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has appeared less optimistic that the U.S. and Iran could reach a deal.

“If the Iranians want to meet, we’re ready,” Rubio said during a news conference at the State Department. “I’m not sure you can reach a deal with these guys, but we’re going to try to find out. This is a president that always prefers a peaceful outcome to any conflict or any challenge.”

Last week, the U.S. confirmed it had shot down two Iranian drones flying near the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier sailing in the region.

The president continues to cite the increasingly significant naval presence in the region, hoping to pressure the Islamic Republic to “make a deal.”

“It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm, and purpose,” the president wrote on social media. “It is a larger fleet, headed by the great Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln, than that sent to Venezuela. Like Venezuela, it is ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary.”

The president is calling on Iran to “come to the table and negotiate a fair and equitable deal,” underscoring that the Islamic Republic cease trying to rebuild its nuclear program.

It’s unclear if the Ford will be deployed to the Mediterranean or will join the Lincoln in the Fifth Fleet Area of Command around the Persian Gulf.