US President Donald Trump has postponed the offensive against Iran till April 6, giving primacy to diplomacy and dialogue. Meanwhile, a massive US naval armada has been assembled to tackle the next phase, with three aircraft carriers and a huge amphibious assault ship waiting for military orders from Central Command.
The aircraft carrier Gerald Ford is in the Mediterranean, USS George Bush is off the coast of Gibraltar, and USS Abraham Lincoln is off the Gulf of Oman in the Arabian Sea. The amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli and USS New Orleans, carrying nearly 4,000 marines, are in the southern Indian Ocean Region.
Reports from Washington indicate that President Trump has the option of deploying as many as 10,000 troops on the ground in the Persian Gulf to allow freedom of navigation in the Straits of Hormuz. The move is also to support Gulf Countries who have been on the receiving end of Iran's IRGC.
The US has assembled a formidable force, with 11 Arleigh Burke Class destroyers in the Middle East, over 1,000 fighters, bombers, and interdictors on board three aircraft carriers, and nuclear-powered conventionally armed fast attack submarines of the Los Angeles class operating in the entire Middle East theatre.
The positioning of the armada and the fleet size suggest that the US war arsenal may move into the Persian Gulf after securing the Iranian coast and islands within the Gulf and on the Strait of Hormuz.
