The United States will send the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to the Middle East to back up another one already there, using more firepower in an effort to force Iran into a deal over its nuclear program.
The USS Gerald Ford was also part of the Venezuelan strike force and was sent by Trump to the Caribbean last October. (AP)Sources at The Associated Press confirmed the deployment of the second carrier after an aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, had already been sent to the Middle East in an alert to Tehran.
Tensions between the US and Iran have risen since Iran’s deadly crackdown on protesters last month that left thousands dead. The US has already warned of “catastrophic” consequences if Tehran does not agree to a deal on its nuclear program.
The first aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, and its guided-missile destroyer are already in the Arabian Sea. Last week US forces shot down an Iranian drone that approached the carrier.
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USS Gerald Ford was also part of the Venezuelan strike forceThe USS Gerald Ford was also part of the Venezuelan strike force and was sent by Trump to the Caribbean last October. Months before Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro was imprisoned, Trump sent the USS Gerald to the Caribbean islands for a military operation.
The USS Ford began deployment in late June 2025, meaning the crew will be deployed for eight months in two weeks.
Regarding the movement of the second aircraft carrier to the Middle East, the US Southern Command said that American forces in Latin America “will continue to counter illegal activities and malicious actors in the Western Hemisphere,” AP quoted them as saying.
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Southern Command spokesman Emmanuel L. Ortiz said U.S. forces “will be fully prepared to project power, defend themselves and protect U.S. interests in the region.”
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Trump warned Iran on Friday that failure to reach a deal with his administration would be “very painful.” The two countries also held indirect talks in Oman last week.
“I think something like that will happen next month,” Trump said Thursday of the possibility of a deal with Iran on its nuclear program.
Gulf Arab states have already warned that an attack could spark another regional conflict in the Middle East, which is still reeling from the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
(With input from The Associated Press)
