The U.S. military has pre-positioned naval, air, and troop assets throughout Southwest Asia for the regional conflict the State Department has been promoting all along. The stated aim of the conflict is Iran. Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said yesterday that the DOD is watching whether there will be a retaliatory attack on Israel by Hezbollah, Iran, or “the proxy groups in Iraq and Syria,” and that “concern about such a response is the driving force behind the decision to bolster the U.S. force posture in the region.” She said that the U.S. must have “the capability in the region to defend our forces and—of course, if needed—to come to the defense of Israel.”
The Defense Department issued a statement yesterday, “DOD Enhances Middle East Defense Posture,” giving details, and carrying the remarks cited above. The statement recapped actions taken in recent days. “The measures DOD is taking include ordering the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group to remain in the U.S. Central Command area of operations past its regular rotation date; reinforcement of U.S. air defense capabilities; and using U.S. forces rotating into the region to augment rather than replace forces already there.” It is reported that, “some of the augmented forces” being sent to the region include F-16, F-15E and F-22 fighter aircraft, as well as A-10 attack aircraft and associated personnel. “’The Secretary also increased the readiness of additional U.S. forces to deploy, elevating our preparedness to respond to various contingencies,” Singh said.
