USS Nimitz to Stay in Middle East, Iran will defend its interests

Shafaq News/ Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller said in a statement that he had directed the USS Nimitz to the Middle East, three days after ordering that it be sent home.

USS Nimitz is a super carrier of the United States Navy, and the lead ship of its class. It is one of the largest warships in the world.

The move was a remarkable change of heart for Miller, who had previously ordered the carrier be sent home against advice by top commanders that the carrier needed to remain near the Middle East because it represented an important show of force at a time when the threat posed by Iran was high, officials said.

Regarding this movement, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman commented "We are not looking for tensions with the US but are very serious about defending our interests”.

Tension between the United States and Iran has ramped up over the last year, culminating in the U.S. killing of Iranian military mastermind Qassem Soleimani and Iraq’s paramilitary chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in a drone strike at Baghdad airport in January 2020.