US moves third carrier strike group and thousands more troops toward Iran
As the war with Iran enters its eighth month, the US is sending a third aircraft carrier strike group and up to 10,000 additional troops to the region, while rejecting Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
New troop deployment
According to Al Jazeera, the United States is significantly expanding its military presence near Iran as the war there enters its eighth month. A US official told the outlet that the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group left its San Diego base on Sunday, followed a day later by the Makin Island Marine Expeditionary Unit carrying more than 2,000 Marines.
The Wall Street Journal reported that these deployments could total 9,000 to 10,000 additional troops, including sailors and Marines assigned to the carrier strike group and other ships. By the end of November, the official said, three aircraft carriers and two amphibious landing groups will be positioned near Iran. The official said this concentration of force would give President Donald Trump a wider range of options should he decide to act.
Existing US presence
Roughly 50,000 US service members are already stationed in the region. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the US operates from at least 19 locations in the Middle East, eight of which — in Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — are permanent bases. Since early February, more than 120 aircraft, including F-35 and F-22 fighters, have been deployed to the region, which military analysts describe as the largest US airpower surge in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq War. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said forces are "ready to go" should Trump order new strikes.
Diplomacy and political backdrop
In an interview with Time magazine, Trump said it was "possible" he could intensify bombing of Iran after the November midterm elections, though he declined to give specifics. Last week, Iran submitted a proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, conditional on the US lifting sanctions, unfreezing Iranian assets and guaranteeing an end to strikes. The Trump administration rejected the proposal; analysts say Washington wants Iran's nuclear programme addressed first. The war's deep unpopularity in the US is adding political pressure on Trump's Republican Party ahead of the midterms.
