In the midst of escalating hostilities between Israel and Iran, the US has shifted its aircraft carrier USS Nimitz from the South China Sea westwards. The move was made on Monday morning, as per a Reuters report based on Marine Traffic data, indicating a possible repositioning towards the Middle East.
The ship was set to make a port call to Danang City in central Vietnam this week. But two sources, one of whom was a diplomat told Reuters that the scheduled June 20 reception had been cancelled.
One source reported that the US Embassy in Hanoi told him that the cancellation was made because of what was termed “an emergent operational requirement.”
Only last week, the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group was engaging in maritime security operations in the South China Sea as part of routine US Navy presence in the Indo-Pacific, as reported on the website of the US Pacific Fleet.
After the cancellation of the Vietnam tour, Marine Traffic tracking information showed that the carrier had turned around and was headed west towards the Middle East, where tensions between Iran and Israel have increased over the past few days.