The United States Navy will keep two carrier strike groups deployed in the Middle East until further notice, following an order from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to deploy the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) to the region from its previous location in the Pacific Ocean. This decision came after a high-level call with Yoav Gallant, the current Israeli Defense Minister, discussing the escalating tensions between his country and various terrorist groups conducting ongoing attacks from neighboring nations.
In this context, the U.S. Navy will keep both the carrier strike group of the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) and that of the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) in the region, with both currently located in the waters of the Gulf of Aden. Notably, the former arrived in the area last Wednesday, while the latter has been in the region since June, with its original return to base planned following the Lincoln’s arrival.
As of today, there is no estimated date for either of the two groups to return to their base in San Diego, reflecting an observable trend since 2021 of maintaining at least one carrier strike group in the Middle East and the Mediterranean Sea. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. Navy has deployed four carrier strike groups there: the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) since 2021, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69), and the two groups mentioned.
Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder commented on this, stating: “It is clear that fleet management, force management, and global force management are something we take very seriously, including the Secretary of Defense himself, and it is something we will always consider (…) But it is also important, once again, to step back and analyze why we have these capabilities and why we have those assets to support our national security interests.”
It is worth noting that following the arrival of the CVN-72 carrier strike group in the Middle East, the U.S. Navy currently does not have any operational carriers in the Pacific Ocean (for at least three weeks), as the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) was moved from its base in Yokosuka, Japan, to Washington State. Other carrier strike groups deployed there, such as the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Nimitz, are undergoing maintenance or are docked in port.
Although not directly addressing the issue, spokesperson Ryder appeared to refer to it in his statements: “Such decisions obviously require a lot of thought, but we will certainly do everything we can to ensure that we meet our national security commitments while managing the limited resources we have worldwide (…) All of this to say that this is exactly one of the key attributes of the Department of Defense, our ability to surge forces where and when we need them for various contingencies and crises, and that is exactly what we are seeing here.”
Images used for illustrative purposes
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