Washington: Days after sending the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and US B-53 bomber to mount pressure on Iran, the Pentagon on Friday said it would deploy Patriot missile defence system and a Navy warship to the Middle East.
The USS Arlington, a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock used to carry amphibious vehicles and aircraft, will join the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group in the Persian Gulf, reports BBC.
The Patriot battery is a long-range, all-weather air defence system to counter tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and advanced aircraft.
Earlier this week, the US Air Force has released images showing B-52H Stratofortress bombers arriving at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
Others landed at an undisclosed location on Wednesday.
The Pentagon said the deployment was "in response to indications of heightened Iranian readiness to conduct offensive operations against U.S. forces and our interests."
"These assets will join the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and a US Air Force bomber task force in the Middle East region in response to indications of heightened Iranian readiness to conduct offensive operations against US forces and our interests," the Pentagon said in a statement.
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Washington's move is the latest in a series of actions aimed at exerting pressure on Iran. While it previously used economic sanctions, the US is now militarily threatening Tehran with new deployments to the Central Command region.
Recently, Washington also ended sanctions waivers for countries buying Iranian oil with effect from May 1.
