Imagery from the European Space Agency’s satellites showed Carrier Strike Group 11, a formation of U.S. Navy warships, including an aircraft carrier, approaching the Strait of Hormuz between the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. General Joseph Votel, member of CERL’s Executive Board, told Newsweek there has been a notable expansion of U.S. military posturing, and that the attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran’s nuclear weapons program have had a “significant impact.” 

General Joseph L. Votel, U.S. Army (Ret.), is the former Commander of the U.S. Central Command. He is a Distinguished Military Fellow at the Middle East Institute and a member of the CERL Executive Board. Read his bio here. 

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