US Boosts Forces in Region, as Tensions Remain High and Aircraft Carrier Slated to Leave
“Secretary Austin continues to make clear that should Iran, its partners, or its proxies use this moment to target American personnel or interests in the region, the United States will take every measure necessary to defend our people.”
WASHINGTON DC, United States (Kurdistan 24) The U.S. Defense Department announced on Friday that it is beefing up its military forces in the Middle East in advance of the scheduled departure of a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group.
The statement came as tensions in the region remain high. Washington’s initial hope that Iran would not respond to Israel’s Oct. 26 retaliatory strike, because that attack was restrained, as the Biden administration had urged, appear dashed by strong words out of Iran on Thursday.
As The New York Times reported, there is now an expectation of an Iranian retaliatory strike on Israel sometime after the Nov. 5 U.S. elections.
In addition, Iran’s proxies in the region also carry out attacks. They include the so-called “Islamic Resistance in Iraq.” Two groups, in particular, have been engaged in such activity: Katai’ib Hizbollah and Harakat Hizbollah al-Nujaba.
It is unclear if the groups have any significant support within Iraq or if they are, primarily, vehicles for Iranian influence.
The Baghdad government considers their actions extremely irresponsible, and it has grown concerned about the possibility of an Israeli retaliatory strike on Iraq in response to their attacks.
“Those groups who have the rockets and the drones should go to Gaza and Lebanon to fight Israel, rather than pushing Iraq towards destruction,” Abdul Amir Thuaiban, an adviser to Prime Minister Sudani, strongly advised, as Reuters reported out of Baghdad on Thursday.
Read More: Washington to Baghdad: We’ll Help Prevent Israeli Attack in Retaliation for Militia Strikes
The aircraft carrier strike group, the USS Abraham Lincoln, is in the Middle East. It was originally scheduled to return to the U.S. in late September. However, its presence in the region was extended by a month, because of the tensions generated by the conflict between Israel, on the one hand, and Iran and its proxies on the other.
But now, in the coming weeks, the carrier strike group really is departing the area. However, no other carrier strike group is available to replace it. So the U.S. is sending forces that operate from land, which is what the Pentagon announced on Friday.
However, the announcement did not explain where the newly-deployed forces would be based. It is, perhaps, noteworthy that America’s biggest military base in the Middle East is in Qatar: the Al Udeid Air Base.
Pentagon Announcement
‘In keeping with our commitments to the protection of U.S. citizens and forces in the Middle East, the defense of Israel, and de-escalation through deterrence and diplomacy, the Secretary of Defense ordered the deployment of additional ballistic missile defense destroyers, fighter squadron and tanker aircraft, and several U.S. Air Force B-52 long range strike bombers to the region,” Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder explained in the statement released late on Friday.
“These forces will begin to arrive in coming months, as the USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN Carrier Strike Group prepares to depart,” he added.
The aim of the increase in U.S. forces is not only to protect Israel, but to protect other key U.S. interests in the region, as well. That includes not only ensuring the safety of U.S. personnel, but the defense of shipping in the Red Sea and the Sea of Aden, which has been under attack from the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.
“These deployments build on the recent decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system to Israel, as well as DoD’s sustained Amphibious Ready Group Marine Expeditionary Unit (ARG/MEU) posture in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Ryder continued.
“These movements demonstrate the flexible nature of U.S. global defense posture and U.S.capability to deploy world-wide on short notice to meet evolving national security threats,” he said.
Ryder’s statement concluded with a warning to Tehran: “Secretary Austin continues to make clear that should Iran, its partners, or its proxies use this moment to target American personnel or interests in the region, the United States will take every measure necessary to defend our people.”