Charles Skelton: “recently the aircraft carrier Nimitz sailed into the Persian Gulf ahead of its scheduled rotation. The purpose of the…”

“recently the aircraft carrier Nimitz sailed into the Persian Gulf ahead of its scheduled rotation. The purpose of the deployment was to warn Iran and Iraq against sending aircraft into the no-fly zone that the United Nations has mandated in southern Iraq since the end of the Persian Gulf War. Two weeks earlier, Iran defied the ban and sent aircraft into Iraq to attack sites that anti-Iranian insurgent groups were using to stage raids. Iraq, in turn, was threatening to put up its own aircraft to defend its sovereignty against any further Iranian attacks. A strong word of U.S. caution, backed up by a show of military strength in the region, was necessary to keep Saddam Hussein in his box and to deter further Iranian adventurism. Apparently, despite vocal protests from both sides, the mission has been accomplished since there have been no more egregious violations of the no-fly zone. Mr. Speaker, such a use of U.S. military power to enforce stability in a tense part of the globe is not an isolated case. Just a year and a half ago the United States sent the Nimitz into the Taiwan Straits in response to China's threatening missile tests at the time of the Taiwanese election.”