The U.S. military is deploying more fighter aircraft to the Middle East and extending the deployment of other warplanes, bolstering U.S. military forces in the region as the war between Israel and Iran shows no signs of de-escalating, according to U.S. officials.
One of the officials said the deployments include F-16, F-22 and F-35 fighter aircraft, according to Reuters.
Two officials stressed the defensive nature of the deployment of fighter aircraft, which have been used to shoot down drones and projectiles.
Meanwhile, other news agencies quoting a senior Defense official said, the moves by the U.S. military have been made with an eye toward protecting American troops stationed in the Middle East. There are about 40,000 U.S. service members there.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. is ‘postured defensively’ as more warplanes and a massive aircraft carrier moves to the Middle East region
“We are postured defensively in the region to be strong, in pursuit of a peace deal,” Hegseth told Fox News in a June 16 interview.
