Those US capabilities include the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group, fighter aircraft and air defences.
“We have more capability in the region today than we did on April 14th when Iran conducted its drone and missile attack against Israel,” Ryder said.
“So all of those forces combined provide us with the options to be able to protect our forces should they be attacked.”
Ryder referred to Iran’s attack by more than 300 missiles and drones, which caused only modest damage inside Israel thanks to air defence interceptions from the United States, Britain and other allies in the region. The Apr 14 strikes were Iran’s first-ever direct attack on Israel.