WASHINGTON — The USS Abraham Lincoln has been shifted away from the Iraq war to better support military efforts in Afghanistan, the U.S. military said Tuesday.
Worried about increasing insurgent attacks in Afghanistan, the U.S. military says it is sending extra air power there.
The Everett-based aircraft carrier was moved out of the Persian Gulf and to the Gulf of Oman, shortening the time that the carrier’s strike planes must fly to support combat in Afghanistan, defense officials said Tuesday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the record.
One official said the decision reflects both the worsened state of the fight in Afghanistan but improvements in Iraq as well. Because violence is down in Iraq, U.S. defense leadership believes it is possible to focus some air capabilities away from Iraq and more on Afghanistan.
The Navy routinely moves ships in and out of the Persian Gulf, where they not only support America’s two ongoing wars but serve as a show of force to Iran and sign of support to regional allies.
However, a spokesman for the 5th Fleet told Stars and Stripes that the Lincoln’s move is not intended to send a message to Iran.
“It’s absolutely not in response to Iran whatsoever,” Lt. Nathan Christensen told the paper.
For security reasons, Stars and Stripes reported, Christensen could not say how long the Lincoln would provide air support for Afghanistan or when the carrier is expected to leave the 5th Fleet area of operations.
“They are there for the foreseeable future,” Lt. Cmdr. Bill Speaks, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, told Stars and Stripes.
The departure of the Lincoln from the Persian Gulf still leaves a number of other ships there, including the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu, other amphibious ships and a couple of destroyers.
There is still also “significant air power” remaining on the ground inside Iraq, one official said.
Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Monday that it appears “security conditions are holding” in Iraq and that important elements of a solution to the war — including reduced levels of sectarian violence, political reconciliation and stronger Iraqi forces — are coming into view more than five years after the U.S. invasion.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last week that he has “real concern” about a sharp rise in attacks in eastern Afghanistan, a development he blamed on Pakistan’s failure to put pressure on insurgents there.
Herald staff contributed to this report.
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