Another U.S. aircraft carrier expected to head to Middle East, officials say

The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier and its escort ships are expected to head from the Caribbean to the Middle East, three U.S. officials told CBS News, adding a second aircraft carrier to the region as tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue to simmer.

The Ford — which is the Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier — is set to join the USS Abraham Lincoln and its carrier strike group, which arrived in the Middle East late last month. The region is overseen by the U.S. military’s Central Command.

The Ford carrier strike group has been in the Caribbean region since November, part of a broader military buildup near Venezuela. American forces in that region have conducted dozens of strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats and, last month, captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

The New York Times was first to report on the Ford’s expected movement.

The planned deployment comes as President Trump presses Iran to strike a nuclear deal, threatening military action against Iran if it doesn’t agree to curb its nuclear program. The president also pressured Iran over its violent crackdown on anti-regime protesters last month.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly warned in recent weeks that a “massive armada” is on its way to Iran. In an interview with Axios on Tuesday, Mr. Trump said he was “thinking” about sending another aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East region.. 

“Either we will make a deal or we will have to do something very tough like last time,” he told Axios, seemingly referring to a set of U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June.

Mr. Trump told NBC News last week that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, “should be very worried.” Khamenei, meanwhile, warned that any attacks by the U.S. would spark a “regional war” in the Middle East.

Representatives from Iran and the U.S. held indirect talks in Oman last week. Officials from both countries said the talks went well and that negotiations would continue.