One of the largest warships in the world made its port call in Bahrain yesterday, sending a clear message to adversaries that the US security commitment and its naval presence in Gulf waters are here to stay.
Nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz returned for a scheduled port call at the Khalifa Bin Salman Port with more than 5,000 crew members onboard and a fleet of F-18 super jets and attack helicopters.
The ship is part of the Carrier Strike Group that has been operating in the US Central Command that covers 21 nations, which stretches from Northeast Africa across the Middle East to Central and South Asia.
USS Nimitz was deployed amidst the conflict between Israel and Iran, and also to maintain pressure on the Iranian-backed Houthi militias operating from Yemen.
The warship replaced another US aircraft carrier, Carl Vinson, last month to support Middle East operations.
The GDN was given a tour of the Nimitz, followed by an interaction with Carrier Strike Group Eleven’s Commander Rear Admiral Frederic Goldhammer, who briefly spoke about their vision, mission and strategic partnership with Bahrain.
“We were originally operating in the Seventh Fleet (headquartered in Japan) which is more in the Indo-Pacific, and were pulled over (to the Middle East),” Rear Adm Goldhammer told the GDN, on the sidelines of the visit.
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