WASHINGTON, July 8: A US aircraft carrier has moved to the Arabian Sea to support military operations in Afghanistan, leaving the Gulf without a carrier, US defence officials said on Tuesday.

The shift by the USS Abraham Lincoln over the weekend comes amid stepped up insurgent violence in Afghanistan where US combat casualties have been on the rise even as they have dropped sharply in Iraq.

The operations in Afghanistan and Iraq “are extremely dynamic and sometimes we have to adjust the posture of forces so we can take advantage of certain opportunities that are there,” said a Navy official, who asked not to be identified.

The official emphasized that the repositioning of the Abraham Lincoln was unrelated to tensions with Iran, which on Tuesday announced that the Revolutionary Guard forces were kicking off a new round of war games.

“This is not a move in preparation for an attack on Iran. We’re simply repositioning the capabilities to support the commanders on the ground down there,” the official said. The official said the aircraft carrier was moved from the Gulf and to the Gulf of Oman, shortening the time that the carrier’s strike planes must fly to support combat in Afghanistan.

The Navy routinely moves ships in and out of the Persian Gulf, where they not only support America’s two current wars but also serve as a show of force to Iran.—Agencies