Trump pulls last aircraft carrier in Asia to send to Mideast, and China ‘is quite happy with U.S. distraction’ as Beijing shows signs of aggression

President Donald Trump has ordered the USS George Washington to move from the Pacific to the Middle East, leaving the region without a U.S. aircraft carrier. The USS Abraham Lincoln, currently in the Middle East, is facing mental health issues and supply problems that led to its extended deployment. Analysts say the open-ended operations with Iran are straining the USS carriers, causing fatigue among American sailors.

Beijing, the Chinese government, sees the U.S. military presence in the region as a threat to its rise and a hindrance to its goal of taking Taiwan. However, the U.S. argues that the Pacific region is too important economically to lose. China has conducted naval exercises with Indonesia and recently shown aggression towards Japan and the Philippines, both of which are key U.S. allies with territorial disputes with Beijing.

The absence of an aircraft carrier in the Pacific may be temporary if the Navy deploys another carrier soon. However, the lack of carriers raises concerns about U.S. commitment, with the administration focusing more on the Western Hemisphere. Aircraft carriers provide psychological assurance to U.S. allies, as noted by Michael Swaine, a senior research fellow in the Quincy Institute's East Asia Program.

The Navy's 11 aircraft carriers typically deploy two or three at a time, but with the USS Theodore Roosevelt also headed to the Middle East, a carrier may soon return to the Pacific. However, the maintenance backlog at the two carrier shipyards may lead to a decreased carrier presence in the region.