Last week, the Pentagon announced the deployment of additional and new military capabilities in the Middle East, including the possible deployment of a squadron of F-22 Raptor stealth fighters from the U.S. Air Force (USAF). The aim of this measure is to deter a potential conflict between Iran and Israel following recent tensions between the two nations, stemming from the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
This was also confirmed by Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh in a statement, highlighting that “the Department of Defense continues to take steps to mitigate the possibility of a regional escalation by Iran or its partners and proxies. To that end, Secretary Austin has ordered adjustments to the U.S. military posture designed to enhance the protection of U.S. forces, increase support for Israel’s defense, and ensure that the U.S. is prepared to respond to various contingencies.”
Reinforcing its presence in the region has been, is, and will continue to be a focal point for the United States, which is why they are also considering sending additional cruisers and destroyers with ballistic missile defense capabilities.
Details of the New U.S. Deployments in the Middle East
On August 1, President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the “new defensive military deployments” by the United States, mentioning the deployment of its main fifth-generation air superiority fighter: the F-22 Raptor. Promoting the deployment of these stealth fighters is part of the current U.S. strategy in the Middle East, aiming to support a larger number of warplanes in the region.
It is noteworthy that the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters are already deployed under the area of responsibility of U.S. Central Command along with the A-10 Thunderbolt II. In this context, positioning the F-22s alongside the rest of the U.S. air capabilities in the region will allow the country to have greater defensive support capacity.
Additionally, the U.S. continues to rotate additional forces in the region, and new ships will also be deployed near Israel. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, along with its Carrier Air Wing and Strike Group, is expected to replace the strike group of the USS Theodore Roosevelt in U.S. Central Command.
This might be the largest deployment of U.S. forces to the region since the early days of the Gaza war. However, as Singh justified, “U.S. global defense is dynamic, and the Department of Defense retains the ability to deploy on short notice to address changing national security threats.”
*Photographs used for illustration purposes.
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