The US carrier strike group "Eisenhower" entered the Persian Gulf on the 26th, including the Aegis cruiser "Philippine Sea", the Aegis destroyers "Greavely" and "Steim", and the frigate "Languedoc" of the French Navy. According to the commander of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, Sardar Taunsiri, the US aircraft carrier strike group encountered Iranian ships as soon as it entered the Persian Gulf, so it turned south, away from the Iranian coast and ships. At the same time, Iran's drones also flew above the aircraft carrier strike group to warn the United States to land. The U.S. military said it was only above the strike group and was not close to Iranian ships or airspace. In order to avoid conflict, the US military decided to recall ***
This incident shows the intention of the US aircraft carrier to enter the Persian Gulf with the intention of deterring Iran, but it was "deterred" by Iran, highlighting the characteristics of the narrow waters of the Persian Gulf that are not suitable for the aircraft carrier strike group to carry out its mission.
Over the past few decades, the U.S. Navy has deployed carrier strike groups in the Indian Ocean to support war operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. However, as the U.S. military's strategic focus shifts to the Asia-Pacific region, the U.S. Navy has shifted the focus of the deployment of aircraft carrier strike groups to this region. In recent years, the number of US aircraft carrier strike groups in the Indian Ocean has decreased, but it still remains. However, after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in 2022, the US Navy shifted the operational focus of the aircraft carrier strike group in the Mediterranean to the direction of the Black Sea, posing a threat to Russia.
In May this year, the USS Ford aircraft carrier strike group entered the Mediterranean Sea for deployment, replacing the previous aircraft carrier strike group. However, after the outbreak of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the US Navy decided to extend the deployment of the "Ford" to the coastal waters of the eastern Mediterranean Sea to provide protection for Israel. As a result of this decision, the USS Ford was unable to gain full combat capability and take off and land F-35C stealth carrier-based fighters. At the same time, the US Navy decided to send the nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine "Florida" into the Persian Gulf to use the Tomahawk cruise missiles carried by the submarine to warn Iran.
The U.S. Navy's deployment in the Middle East faces a dilemma. On the one hand, due to the limited number of aircraft carriers, the US Navy can only make up for the lack of aircraft carriers by extending the deployment time. However, doing so can lead to fatigue of the strength and equipment of the carrier strike group, and will also have a detrimental effect on the Navy's maintenance and upgrade efforts.
On the other hand, the United States strategically wants to shift its focus to the Asia-Pacific region and reduce its investment in the Middle East. At the same time, the United States is reluctant to re-enter the Middle East into conflict and avoid military conflict and friction with Iran. Therefore, in the future, the policy of the US Navy may be adjusted to reduce its military presence in the Middle East and focus more on the Asia-Pacific region.
Overall, the U.S. military's choice to avoid conflict and friction in the event of an carrier strike group entering the Persian Gulf and encountering Iranian ships and drones shows that they want to exercise restraint and avoid escalating the conflict. However, the deployment and mission of the US Navy in the Middle East still faces many challenges and dilemmas, and future policy adjustments are worth continuing to observe.