The Navy dissented from US plans to shift assets toward the conflict between Israel and Iran, complaining that the move would disrupt scheduled maintenance cycles by putting two carrier groups in the theater, two Pentagon officials said.
The Navy’s complaint didn’t reflect specific concerns about aiding Iran operations, but rather long-running worries that the service is overstretched.
“The Navy’s ship maintenance schedule is very delicate,” one of the officials said. “Even a few days’ delay has a knock-on effect that extends years into the future.”
Semafor reported Saturday that a senior Trump appointee, Defense Undersecretary Elbridge Colby, expressed separate reservations about shifting resources to the Middle East; he’s part of a Republican bloc that wants to refocus the Pentagon toward confronting China.
The Navy this week shifted a second carrier to the region, a sign that Trump does not share aides’ concerns.