John Bolton Warns Of Troubling Warnings From Iran As US Strike Group Enters Region

A US aircraft carrier strike group in due in the Persian Gulf following a statement by National Security Advisor John Bolton. The aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and a bomber task force will arrive in waters near Iran, though it appears they were already scheduled to visit the region before Bolton’s announcement.

Bolton, who is a well-known hawk on Iran, said there were a ‘number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings’ from Iran, but there is no clarity about what he was talking about. There have been no recent incidents in the Persian Gulf that might account for his statement. Bolton appeared to be warning about something that doesn’t appear to be easily identifiable.

“The United States is not seeking war with the Iranian regime, but we are fully prepared to respond to any attack, whether by proxy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or regular Iranian forces,” Bolton’s written statement said.

The presence of the strike group will aim ‘to send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force.’

Military deployments of this kind are usually planned well in advance, so it’s likely the ships were en route to the Gulf anyway. It is highly unusual for the National Security Advisor to make an announcement like this or to peg it to an apparently non-existent escalation of tensions.

Bolton has always taken a hard line on Iran and many observers believe he would welcome a major US military strike on the Islamic republic. Relations between Iran and the US have been poor since 1979, when the autocratic and US-backed Shah was overthrown by Muslim fundamentalists.