Don’t pull warship out of Persian Gulf: Retired admiral to Obama
Retired US admiral James Stavridis has attacked President Barack Obama for deciding to withdraw an American warship from the Persian Gulf.
The US Navy announced last month that the USS Theodore Roosevelt would leave the Persian Gulf this fall for two months and that would be the first time the Pentagon has no warships in the region since 2007.
“We have 11 active nuclear aircraft carriers today in the United States Navy,” Stavridis said on Sunday.
“It is hard for me to understand why we cannot manage a fleet of that size to maintain an aircraft carrier at all times in regions as dangerous as” the Persian Gulf, the former NATO Supreme Commander added.
The warship has been launching strikes against the ISIL terrorist group’s targets in Iraq and Syria since last year.
The retired admiral also warned that the United States is still at war, but the commander-in-chief is cutting military spending.
“We have already cut defense… about 30 percent over the last 10 years, and we’re still at war,” Stavridis said.
“We’re actively involved on multiple continents in real combat operations. We should not be drastically reducing our troop levels,” he argued.
He also called on the Obama administration to push back against the “Russian aggression.”
“We need to… show them that that’s simply not appropriate behavior in the 21st century,” Stavridis said, referring to the current crisis in Ukraine.
Washington accuses Moscow of supporting pro-Russian forces fighting in eastern Ukraine, an allegation denied by the Kremlin.
US intercepts another tanker off Venezuela as Washington escalates pressure campaign against Caracas
US launches ‘retaliatory strikes on Daesh targets’ in Syria amid controversy over intervention
US 'lethal' strikes target two vessels as Trump warns of possible war with Venezuela
VIDEO | Karachi observes Yalda Night with tribute to Palestine, Lebanon resistance
New Israeli restrictions threaten lifesaving care in Gaza, MSF warns
VIDEO | Egypt-Israel gas deal & its repercussions
Hands off Iran: Iranian workers protest, but refuse to fall into US 'regime change' trap
Unmasking AIPAC leadership: Power brokers behind America’s most influential Israeli lobby
VIDEO | Dangote fuels Africa’s future
Israel calls on Jews in West to move to occupied territories amid reverse immigration
Iran Army warns of ‘decisive’ response to acts of ‘mischief’ by enemies
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
