U.S. aircraft carrier enters Arabian Sea
U.S. aircraft carrier "Abraham Lincoln" arrived in the Arabian Sea on Thursday, January 19, Navy officials said, a likely prelude to testing Iran's recent warning against sending a U.S. carrier through the Strait of Hormuz.
"Abraham Lincoln" joins the USS "Carl Vinson," already in the region, returning the U.S. Navy its standard two-carrier presence there. The carrier USS "John Stennis" left in the past few days and is now traveling back through the western Pacific.
The Lincoln's arrival puts into place all the elements for a U.S. carrier to travel back into the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since recent tensions with Iran escalated.
U.S. military officials said the United States will continue its long-standing military commitment to having an aircraft carrier in the Gulf, but will not say when the transit will take place in light of security concerns about Iran.
Pentagon chief Leon Panetta said U.S. aircraft carriers had always been present in the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf and the country is going to beef up its naval presence in the Persian Gulf since their military intervention can be efficient in the region.
Recall that Iran threatened to stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz if foreign sanctions were imposed on its crude exports.
