U.S. Warships Sent to Yemen Coast to Block Iranian Arms Trafficking

A U.S. aircraft carrier was sent to the coast off of Yemen early this week to help other American ships block Iran from shipping weapons to Shiite Houthi fighters in Yemen.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Normandy traveled to the Persian Gulf this week to ensure that the Iranian convoy allegedly carrying weapons would not be able to reach Yemen's shores.

As CNN reports, the presence of the USS Theodore Roosevelt and its companion ship, the USS Normandy, is meant to both deter Iranian fleets from trafficking weapons, as well as to reassure allies in the area of U.S. interest in keeping weapons from Houthi fighters.

"We are closely monitoring all maritime activity in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden," Cmdr. Kevin Stephens of the United States' Fifth Fleet told CNN in a recent interview. "We not going discuss the number and types of vessels we are monitoring or speculate about the possible destination or cargo of those vessels."

Another American official who declined to be identified told the New York Times in an interview that the presence of the American aircraft carrier is about "sending a message."

"This is really about sending a message," said an American official who declined to be identified as discussing a continuing military operation. "It is a message to our partners that we are in this and willing to support. It is a message to the Iranians that we're watching."

Another unidentified defense official told Reuters that the ships had been sent to the region "to conduct maritime security operations," adding that the ships "have no specific mission to intercept Iranian arms shipments."