{"id":83058,"date":"2026-02-19T18:25:53","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T18:25:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2026\/02\/19\/us-military-assets-flock-to-middle-east-amid-iran-standoff\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T17:29:49","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T17:29:49","slug":"us-military-assets-flock-to-middle-east-amid-iran-standoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2026\/02\/19\/us-military-assets-flock-to-middle-east-amid-iran-standoff\/","title":{"rendered":"US military assets flock to Middle East amid Iran standoff"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">President Donald Trump recently dispatched the world\u2019s largest aircraft carrier to the Middle East amid diplomatic talks with Iran \u2014 with a warning that, should the Islamic Republic refuse a nuclear deal, a U.S. assault \u201cfar worse\u201d than last June\u2019s Operation Midnight Hammer will be the consequence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The president, during remarks at the Board of Peace meeting on Thursday, said he will decide \u201cover the next 10 days\u201d whether he will order a strike on Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe may have to take it a step further or we may not,\u201d he said. \u201cMaybe we\u2019re going to make a deal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The USS Gerald R. Ford is set to become the keystone of the Pentagon\u2019s naval armada in the region. It will soon join about a dozen warships, including the carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, operating in Central Command\u2019s area of responsibility, U.S. officials told Military Times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kevin Donegan, a retired vice admiral and former top Navy commander in the Middle East, said in an interview with Military Times that the movements are clearly intended \u201cto [pressure] the Iranians to come to a negotiated settlement,\u201d while conveying the message that force is a credible option if diplomacy fails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere also has to be, behind that, a potential will to use that force to achieve something, if needed, because the objectives weren\u2019t achieved in another way,\u201d Donegan added, noting that an aircraft carrier offers distinct advantages since it can be positioned close to the frontline while enabling as many as 120 sorties a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Iran\u2019s supreme leader on Tuesday <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/khamenei_ir\/status\/2023707826011378060?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\" title=\"https:\/\/x.com\/khamenei_ir\/status\/2023707826011378060?s=20\">hit back on X,<\/a> pledging to send the warships \u201cto the bottom of the sea.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Americans constantly say that they\u2019ve sent a warship toward Iran,\u201d Ali Khamenei wrote in a post. \u201cOf course, a warship is a dangerous piece of military hardware. However, more dangerous than the warship is the weapon that can send that warship to the bottom of the sea.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Donegan says the threats from Iran are \u201cexpected\u201d given that the regime needs to show it has some kind of leverage as negotiations continue. But he maintained that American military equipment has been \u201csuccessful against Iran in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Ford\u2019s deployment, however, comes despite concerns expressed by Adm. Daryl Caudle, the chief of naval operations, who warned against extending the carrier\u2019s mission as it approaches its eighth month at sea, citing maintenance demands and the strain on its 4,000-strong crew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think the Ford, from its capability perspective, would be an invaluable option for any military thing the president wants to do,\u201d the Navy\u2019s top uniformed officer told reporters last month. \u201cBut if it requires an extension, it\u2019s going to get some push back. And I will see if there is something else I can do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump, who was asked by Military Times aboard Air Force One on Monday if U.S. carriers are being stretched too thin, declined to respond. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said his department \u201cwill be prepared to deliver whatever the president expects\u201d if Tehran spurns a nuclear deal, a signal that a sustained military campaign is still on the table. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet Hegseth, speaking to reporters on Thursday, insisted that \u201cour hope is that we never have to use that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe president is a negotiator looking for a deal,\u201d Hegseth added. \u201cIt would be wise for Iran to see that deal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Open-source flight tracking data suggests that, beyond the fleet, the Pentagon is rapidly massing additional airpower in and adjacent to the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.airandspaceforces.com\/us-amasses-more-airpower-middle-east-iran\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\" title=\"https:\/\/www.airandspaceforces.com\/us-amasses-more-airpower-middle-east-iran\/\">Dozens of aircraft<\/a>, including F-16 Fighting Falcons, F-22 Raptors and F-35 Lightning II, have been flowing within striking distance of Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Refueling tankers, essential to a prolonged air campaign, and EA-18G Growlers, used to disrupt enemy attacks, have also been repositioned closer to the region, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CENTCOM\/status\/2023396429671047416?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"\" title=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CENTCOM\/status\/2023396429671047416?s=20\">according to CENTCOM<\/a> and flight tracking data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Military analysts have also told Military Times that submarines have likely joined the deployment as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All of this takes place as indirect talks between American and Iranian officials appear to have made some progress. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with an Iranian delegation in Geneva and agreed on a \u201cset of guiding principles,\u201d Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said following the meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The White House, for its part, says the discussions achieved \u201ca little bit of progress,\u201d though substantial gaps between the two sides remain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe president has always been very clear, though, with respect to Iran or any country around the world, diplomacy is always his first option, and Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump,\u201d Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said in a briefing on Wednesday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe\u2019s always thinking about what\u2019s in the best interest of the United States of America, of our military, of the American people, and that\u2019s how he makes decisions with respect to military action,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford is set to soon become the keystone of the Pentagon\u2019s naval armada in the region. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":109636,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":68,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[100,12,25,68],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3416],"class_list":["post-83058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"I3I3N7THNVG4ZKUYHDKNEHB7II","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2026\/02\/19\/us-military-assets-flock-to-middle-east-amid-iran-standoff\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>US military assets flock to Middle East amid Iran standoff - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. 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