Iran speaks about U.S. aircraft carriers with unusual intensity. Official commentary, military exercises, and state-aligned media narratives circle back to the same image with striking persistence — a U.S. supercarrier disabled in Gulf waters.
Missile units are presented as tools built for that purpose. Drone formations are staged in ways meant to evoke converging pressure on flight decks. Fast-attack craft operate in choreographed proximity to large hull silhouettes during naval drills.
The repetition is not a theatrical excess. It reflects a deliberate strategic fixation.
Carriers remain the most visible instruments of American force projection. Their arrival off a contested coastline communicates political commitment without diplomatic preface. They provide sustained strike capacity within the operational range while signaling tolerance for escalation. Regional actors read their presence as both a military posture and a political message.
That dual meaning explains Tehran’s focus. The relevant analytical question is often framed narrowly around feasibility — whether Iran could sink one.
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