The United States has deployed 13 warships and a large fleet of aircraft to the Middle East, with a second aircraft carrier also on the way. Is the stage set for a potential military confrontation with Iran? The display of military power towards the region comes less than a year after President Donald Trump ordered attacks against the Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities.

First modification: 02/19/2026 - 11:37 Last modification: 02/19/2026 - 18:04

The United States currently has 13 warships in the Middle East: one aircraft carrier, nine destroyers and three littoral combat ships, with more on the way.

The massive U.S. military deployment to the Middle East, including warships, fighter jets and refueling aircraft, sets the stage for a potentially sustained campaign against Iran, should President Donald Trump give the order.

Trump, who ordered attacks on Iran last year, has repeatedly threatened Tehran with new military action if ongoing negotiations fail to produce a replacement for the nuclear deal that the US president annulled in 2018 during his first term.

CNN and CBS reported on Wednesday that the US military would be ready to launch strikes against Iran as soon as this weekend, although Trump has yet to make a final decision.

Ships

Washington currently has 13 warships in the Middle East: one aircraft carrier – the USS Abraham Lincoln –, nine destroyers and three littoral combat ships, with more on the way, according to a US official.

The USS Gerald R. Ford — the world's largest aircraft carrier — is currently in the Atlantic Ocean, en route from the Caribbean to the Middle East, having been sent there on Trump's orders in early February. It is accompanied by three destroyers.

It is unusual to have two American aircraft carriers — carrying dozens of warplanes and with thousands of sailors on board — in the Middle East.

The United States had two of these naval giants in the region in June last year, when it attacked three Iranian nuclear facilities during Israel's 12-day campaign against Iran.

Aircraft

The United States has also sent a large fleet of aircraft to the Middle East, according to open-source intelligence accounts on X and the flight tracking site Flightradar24.

These include F-22 Raptor stealth fighters, F-15 and F-16 fighter jets, and KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft, necessary to sustain their operations.

On Wednesday, Flightradar24 showed multiple KC-135s flying near or within the Middle East, as well as E-3 Sentry airborne early warning and control aircraft and cargo planes operating in the region.

Protests, threats and negotiations

Trump ordered the shipment of the Lincoln to the Middle East as Iran repressed protests that were initially driven by economic grievances but later transformed into a mass movement against the Islamic republic.

The clerical leadership that took power after the 1979 Islamic revolution responded to the protests with lethal force and has remained in power, while many opponents of the system consider outside intervention as the most likely factor for change.

Trump had repeatedly warned Iran that if it killed protesters, the United States would intervene militarily, and also encouraged Iranians to seize state institutions, stating that "help is on the way."

In January it refrained from ordering attacks, noting that Tehran had stopped more than 800 executions under pressure from Washington, but has since renewed threats against Iran.

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US and Iranian officials held talks in Geneva on Tuesday aimed at avoiding US military intervention. Iran later stated that both sides agreed on “guiding principles” for a deal.

However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that while there was “a little progress,” the two sides “are still very far apart on some issues.”

Leavitt also told reporters that there are “many reasons and arguments that could justify an attack on Iran,” adding: “Iran would do very well to reach an agreement.”

This article is an adaptation of its original in English

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