What You Need to Know: The U.S. Navy has deployed two carrier strike groups, including the USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Abraham Lincoln, to the Middle East in response to escalating tensions involving Iran and its support of Hamas and Houthi militants.
-This show of force, which also includes guided-missile destroyers and submarines, signals U.S. resolve amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
-With Iran threatening retaliation over Israeli actions, the U.S. aims to deter further aggression. Despite the growing threat of regional conflict, it remains uncertain how long the Navy can maintain such a robust presence in the region.
Though it is doubtful that President Theodore Roosevelt is studied in great detail in Iran, at least some in the Revolutionary Guard should know that he was the U.S. leader who ensured America's place on the world stage – a point that is notable as the United States Navy has deployed two carrier strike groups (CSG) to the Middle East.
Fittingly one of those is the Nimitz-class carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), nicknamed "Big Stick" – as in "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Also present in the Gulf of Oman is USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), along with eight U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers and a couple of nuclear-powered attack submarines. To further drive the point home that Washington means business was the deployment of the Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Georgia (SSGN-729).
As the UK's Telegraph newspaper noted on Tuesday, "This time the US Navy has moved to confront the puppet master, not the puppets" – referencing the nearly year-long standoff in the Middle East that began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas conducted a terrorist attack on Israel.
The U.S. has played a complex game of musical chairs, sending one carrier strike group after another to the region to deter escalation and to counter the Iran-back Houthi militants in Yemen. The Houthis have "supported" Hamas in the ongoing war in Gaza by firing missiles and launching drones at commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The deployment has left the U.S. Navy without a significant presence in the Indo-Pacific.
As Tom Sharpe noted in his piece for The Telegraph, there are currently no U.S. warships in the Red Sea, even as the Houthi militia has continued to carry out attacks on international shipping.
"Facing down Iran is clearly the overwhelming US priority right now. Many would argue that it always has been and always will be, but having two carriers right there brings this to the here and now," wrote Sharpe.
Of course, there is more to the story.
Iran has vowed to retaliate against Israel for the killing of a Hamas leader in Tehran next month, while any chance of a peace deal with the Iran-backed terrorist group and Israel was likely derailed after the murder of six hostages in the city of Raffa over the weekend. Despite renewed calls within Israel to end the fighting to bring the remaining hostages home, it is likely the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) will ramp up its assault in Gaza.
With the very real threat of a regional war, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) now has two carriers available. Yet, it remains unclear how long CVN-71 will be able to remain in the region.
The sea service had to extend the deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) twice last fall. The warship finally returned home in January, while USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) also saw her deployment extended three times. Many military analysts had expected USS Theodore Roosevelt to stay in the region for weeks at most, but her time at sea could also be stretched a bit longer.
It was last month that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered CVN-72 to rush her transit to the region as tensions continue to remain close to boiling over. Additional U.S. Air Force fighters have also been sent to undisclosed bases in the Middle East – a sign that Washington won't blink and certainly won't back down.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
Image Credit: U.S. Navy.
