Korean Media: U.S. Aircraft Carrier "Bush" Deployed to Middle East… The 3rd One Sent

According to U.S. President Donald Trump, Iran's military operations will conclude within the next 2-3 weeks. At this time, the U.S. has dispatched a carrier strike group to the Middle East. This marks the third aircraft carrier sent by the United States following the outbreak of hostilities with Iran.

On March 31 local time, according to reports from Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), and others, the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered Nimitz-class aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush, along with its accompanying strike group, departed from the Norfolk Naval Base in Virginia, heading toward the Middle East.

The Bush and its accompanying strike group consist of over 6,000 personnel. It is expected to take several weeks for the Bush to reach the Middle East.

According to U.S. officials, the Bush will join the Abraham Lincoln and Gerald R. Ford aircraft carriers already deployed in the region, resulting in three carriers being stationed in the Middle East in the near term. Currently, the Lincoln is conducting military operations in the Arabian Sea, while the Ford has completed fire repairs at the Crete naval base in Greece and is now docked at a port in Croatia.

Meanwhile, thousands of troops from the U.S. Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division, previously deployed, are also arriving in the Middle East progressively.

Last weekend, the United States sent approximately 2,500 additional marines and other forces to the Middle East, continuing to reinforce military presence there. The specific tasks they will carry out remain unclear. According to the Associated Press, the background behind this deployment is that “while the Trump administration claims progress in negotiations with Iran and suggests a deal could be reached soon, it simultaneously threatens to escalate conflict if no agreement is reached promptly.”

During a signing ceremony held at the White House on the same day, Trump claimed that U.S. military operations in Iran could end and troops could be withdrawn within 2-3 weeks. He stated that negotiations with Iran are still ongoing, adding: “It doesn’t matter whether they sit at the negotiating table or not. They will need 15 to 20 years to recover from the damage inflicted by us. They have no navy, no air force, no communication network, no defense systems—leadership itself has disappeared.”

Source: Chosun Ilbo

Original: toutiao.com/article/1861249369620680/

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