The Pentagon is preparing to deploy a third US aircraft carrier strike group and additional Marine Corps ships to the Middle East, potentially adding 9,000 to 10,000 troops to the region, Anadolu Agency reported.
The deployment comes as President Donald Trump considers the possibility of resuming strikes on Iran after the US midterm elections if no agreement is reached, according to US officials cited by the newspaper.
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The ships, fighter jets, Marines and sailors are expected to arrive in the region by the end of November, the report said.
The USS Theodore Roosevelt departed San Diego on Sunday for a scheduled deployment, while the USS Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, carrying Marines from the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, left port Monday.
The USS George H.W. Bush and USS George Washington are already in the region. If the George Washington strike group remains in the area when the Theodore Roosevelt arrives, the US would have three carrier strike groups in the Middle East for the first time since April.
The additional forces would join more than 50,000 US troops already stationed in the region. However, the USS George Washington could return to its home port in Japan, potentially leaving two carrier strike groups in the Middle East.
The planned deployments follow Trump’s rejection of Iran’s latest seven-day ceasefire proposal. In an interview with Time magazine published Thursday, Trump said the US could resume strikes on Iran after the midterms if no agreement is reached.
Iran’s proposal called for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supplies normally pass, and resuming negotiations over its nuclear program in exchange for lifting a US blockade of Iranian ports.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has also extended the deployment of air-defense units and the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division.
The US has maintained about 20 Navy ships in the region to enforce the blockade and assist with escorting commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
The military buildup comes as the US Navy faces supply shortages and high deployment demands. Iran has recently fired ballistic missiles at US warships, while senior Navy officials have prepared the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt for an extended deployment.
