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THE USS ABRAHAM Lincoln, which had been holding in waters off Australia last month, re-entered the Arabian Sea over the weekend, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. It departed Perth, Australia on Jan. 20 after receiving orders to head back to the Persian Gulf instead of going to its home port at Everett, Wash.
With a possible war against Iraq looming, the Lincoln is in the unusual situation of extending its time at sea indefinitely. It completed its normal six-month deployment in January and was due to return from the Gulf to its home port at Everett, Wash. Instead it was ordered to hold in the western Pacific and await further instructions.
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The more than 5,000 men and women aboard the Lincoln face the kind of extended duty that Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld says may be required of many throughout the military in the months ahead, depending on whether President Bush decides he must use force to disarm Iraq’s Saddam Hussein.
In a message to U.S. servicemen and women around the world, Rumsfeld said that in order to “preserve future options,” deployment and rotation cycles may be disrupted — “adjustments that may mean longer tours of duty than you may have expected.”
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“While the times, places and condition of deployment cannot now be precisely known, we do recognize the uncertainty these circumstances may create for those in uniform, the civilians who work beside them, and the families and loved ones, without whose support their sacrifices would not be possible,” he wrote.
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Rumsfeld’s message to the troops was distributed last week. The text was released by the Pentagon on Monday.
“Be assured that the president will not decide to commit forces unless conditions require it, and only as a last resort,” he added. “Should action be necessary, you will have what you need to carry out the missions assigned.”
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