US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States has an “armada” heading towards Iran but hoped he would not have to use it, as he renewed warnings to Tehran against killing protesters or restarting its nuclear programme.
One official said additional air-defence systems were also being eyed for the Middle East, which could be critical to guard against any Iranian strike on US bases in the region.
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The deployments expand the options available to Trump, both to better defend US forces throughout the region at a moment of tensions and to take any additional military action after striking Iranian nuclear sites in June.
“We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case …I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on his way back to the United States after speaking to world leaders in Davos, Switzerland.
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