US President Donald Trump said on Friday that a second aircraft carrier group would be heading to the Middle East soon, upping the military threat against Iran amid negotiations over its nuclear program.
“It’ll be leaving very shortly,” Trump told journalists when asked about reports the USS Gerald R. Ford would be moved from the Caribbean to the Middle East.
“In case we don’t make a deal, we’ll need it,” Trump added.
Earlier, The New York Times reported that the Ford strike group’s new orders will have it joining the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group in the Persian Gulf as part of President Trump’s resurgent pressure campaign against Iran’s leaders.
Trump had indicated earlier this week that he wanted to send a second carrier to the region, but neither he nor the Navy had identified the vessel.
Tensions have escalated between the US and Iran in the wake of Iran’s deadly crackdown on protesters last month that killed thousands. The US has earlier warned of ‘traumatic’ consequences if Tehran fails to agree a deal over its nuclear programme.
The first aircraft carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln, and its guided-missile destroyers are already in the Arabian Sea. Last week, US forces shot down an Iranian drone that approached the carrier.
USS Gerald Ford was part of the Venezuela strike force
USS Gerald Ford was also part of the Venezuela strike force and was sent to the Caribbean by Donald Trump last October. In the months leading up to the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, Trump sent the USS Gerald to the Caribbean for a military buildup leading to a raid.
The USS Ford set out on deployment in late June 2025, which means the crew will have been deployed for eight months in two weeks.
Trump on Friday warned Iran that failure to reach a deal with his administration would be “very traumatic.” Both nations also held indirect talks in Oman last week.
Speaking about the possibility of striking a deal with Iran on nuclear programme, Trump on Thursday remarked, “I guess over the next month, something like that.”
Gulf Arab nations have already warned that an attack could spiral into another regional conflict in West Asia, which is still reeling from the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
