Austin tells US Navy carrier strike group to arrive in Middle East sooner

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered an aircraft carrier group to hasten its arrival in the Middle East, the Pentagon said on Sunday.

Austin ordered the aircraft carrier strike group led by the USS Abraham Lincoln, and equipped with F-35 fighters, to "accelerate its transit" to the region, said the Pentagon spokesman. The spokenman said Austin, who spoke with his Israeli counterpart Gallant on Sunday, had also ordered the USS Georgia guided missile submarine to the area.

The United States announced last week that it was deploying the strike group, as well as additional ballistic missile defense-capable cruisers and destroyers, and a fighter squadron.