U.S. commander says he could send carrier into Strait of Hormuz despite Iran tensions
Source: Reuters
WORLD NEWS MAY 9, 2019 / 6:15 PM / UPDATED 11 MINUTES AGO
Exclusive: U.S. commander says he could send carrier into Strait of Hormuz despite Iran tensions
Phil Stewart
5 MIN READ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The commander overseeing U.S. naval forces in the Middle East told Reuters on Thursday that American intelligence showing a threat from Iran will not prevent him from sending an aircraft carrier through the vital Strait of Hormuz, if needed.
Vice Admiral Jim Malloy, commander of the U.S. Navys Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet, did not say whether he would send the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group into the strategic waterway off Iran, through which passes a fifth of oil consumed globally.
The group, whose deployment to the Middle East was fast-tracked by President Donald Trumps administration as a warning to Iran, transited through the Suez Canal into the Red Sea on Thursday and was now under Malloys command.
If I need to bring it inside the strait, I will do so, Malloy said in an interview by phone. Im not restricted in any way, Im not challenged in any way, to operate her anywhere in the Middle East.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran-military-exclusive/exclusive-u-s-commander-says-he-could-send-carrier-into-strait-of-hormuz-despite-iran-tensions-idUSKCN1SF2NK