The US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford is expected to arrive in Europe next week, and move closer to the Middle East - amid the war with Iran. CNN reported, citing an American official and two other sources familiar with the matter, that this is the second US aircraft carrier to move closer to the region.

The aircraft carrier Gerald Ford (Photo: Maxwell Orlosky / US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE / AFP)

According to CNN, Gerald Ford was already scheduled to arrive in Europe, but now it is likely to arrive in the eastern Mediterranean, near Israel. At the same time, another aircraft carrier is on its way to the Middle East, and will join the existing carriers - or replace the American aircraft carrier Carl Vinson.