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B-2s moving to Guam amid two-week pause on potential Iran intervention
A Royal Australian Air Force KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport refuels a U.S. Air Force B-2 Spirit above the Pacific Ocean on August 5, 2022. File Photo by Tech. Sgt. Nick Wilson/U.S. Air Force/UPI | License Photo
June 21 (UPI) -- The U.S. military has moved several B-2 Spirit stealth bombers and refueling aircraft to Guam, which may be a precursor to aerial strikes against Iran's most important nuclear facility.
The deployment comes as President Donald Trump has announced a two-week pause to allow for potential cease-fire negotiations to end the hostilities between Israel and Iran.
Trump also has said the U.S. knows where Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is sheltering but won't target him with a military strike for the time being.
Israel has gained aerial superiority in the skies over Iran, but Israel's conventional munitions can't effectively penetrate the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant site in a mountainous area in central Iran, according to reports.
B-2 bombers armed with bunker-buster bombs however, can penetrate the site and the deployment of B-2 bombers and refueling aircraft to Guam raises the potential for eventual U.S. military intervention in Iran.
Guam is about 5,900 miles from Tehran, and B-2 bombers have a range of nearly 6,900 miles with a cruising speed of 559 mph, according to the U.S. Air Force.
When supported by refueling aircraft, the bombers have plenty of range to target Iran's remaining nuclear facilities, or they could be moved to forward bases that are closer to Iran.
Each bomber can carry bomb loads of up to 40,000 pounds, which makes them capable of deploying 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs against the Fordow site.
The bunker-buster bombs can penetrate "any mixture of earth, rock and concrete before the bomb itself then explodes" deep beneath the Earth's surface and obliterate a target, cause its support structure to collapse, or both.
It's unknown if the B-2s flying to Guam also are carrying bunker-buster bombs or if such munitions might have been shipped there or to other regional bases.
Formidable Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant site
Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant is located near Qom in central Iran and about 100 miles south of Tehran.
The facility has 3,000 centrifuges that are located about 300 feet beneath the area's mountains, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday said Iran refuses to reduce its nuclear enrichment "under any circumstances," The New York Times reported.
Iran is "ready to talk and cooperate" with world leaders but will continue its retaliatory attacks against Israel, Pezeshkian said.
The Iranian president's position runs counter to that of Trump's and other U.S. leaders.
Trump "hates nuclear proliferation, [and] I hate nuclear proliferation," Vice President JD Vance told attendees at the Munich Leaders Meeting held in Washington, D.C., on May 7.
Vance advocated for meeting with Chinese and Russian officials to reduce the number of nuclear arms in the world.
"There is no way you get to that conversation if you allow multiple regimes all over the world to ... enter this sprint for a nuclear weapon," Vance said,
"If the Iran domino falls, you're going to see nuclear proliferation all over the Middle East," he added. "That's very bad for us. It's very bad for our friends, and it's something that we don't think can happen."
Vance asked attendees which nation has "civil nuclear power" but does not also have nuclear weapons. "The answer is: No one," Vance said.
"We don't care if people want nuclear power," he said. "But you can't have the kind of enrichment program that allows you to get to a nuclear weapon, and that's where we draw the line."
Houthis would resume attacks on U.S. vessels
If the U.S. attacks the Fordow site or otherwise intervenes in the war between Israel and Iraq, the Houthis have said they will resume attacks on U.S.-flagged commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea.
"Any U.S. aggression or attack in support of the Israeli enemy against Iran serves this goal and therefore cannot go unanswered," the Houthis said in a statement on Saturday.
"Remaining silent would mean surrendering the freedom and dignity of the [Iranian] nation and allowing its wealth to be plundered," the statement continued.
"This is a battle for the entire nation and a salvation for all its people."
The Houthis agreed to stop targeting U.S.-flagged vessels in May after enduring a weeks-long aerial campaign by the U.S. military against Houthi targets in Yemen.
Iranian officials also have threatened to target U.S. bases in the Middle East if the U.S. military intervenes in the war.
