Additional Military Presence in Mideast Delivers Message of Deterrence to Iran, Says Top US Central Command Leader by Lolita C. Baldor – Associated Press
ABOARD THE USS HARRY S TRUMAN — Nearly a month after Iran launched a rare direct military attack against United States forces in Iraq, an uneasy quiet has settled across the Mideast.
Watching fighter jets roar off the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, the top U.S. commander for the region believes he is surrounded by one of the reasons that Iran has dialed back its combat stance, at least for now.
“You’re here because we don’t want a war with Iran and nothing makes a potential adversary think twice about war than the presence of an aircraft carrier and the strike group that comes with it,” Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie told the nearly 5,000 service members on board the 100,000-ton ship. “So, we achieve deterrence, which is preventing Iran from starting a war.”…