The Wall Street Journal reported on the 11th that the U.S. Department of Defense has instructed a second aircraft carrier strike group to prepare for deployment to the Middle East.
Citing U.S. officials, the report said the Pentagon is preparing to deploy a second carrier to the Middle East, expected to depart from the U.S. East Coast in two weeks. This carrier is the 'Bush,' which is currently conducting a series of training exercises off the coast of Virginia, and may accelerate the pace of exercises as a result.
The report pointed out that the deployment order could be issued within hours, but also emphasized that U.S. President Trump has not yet officially given the order to deploy a second carrier to the Middle East, and the plan may be adjusted.
Currently, the USS Lincoln carrier strike group has already been deployed to waters in the Middle East.
On the 10th, President Trump said in an interview with the U.S. news site Axios that he is considering sending a second carrier strike group to the Middle East to prepare for possible military action if negotiations with Iran fail.
The last time the U.S. deployed dual carriers to the Middle East was in April 2025. The Truman carrier strike group and the Carl Vinson carrier strike group launched a large-scale airstrike on Yemen’s Houthi movement.