WASHINGTON (AP) The Pentagon is spending about $27 million a week to maintain the increased U.S. Navy presence in the Mediterranean Sea and Middle East region to keep watch over Syria and be prepared to strike if needed.
President Barack Obama told the nation he ordered the military to maintain its current posture to keep pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad and be in a position to respond if diplomacy fails.
The Navy has two aircraft carrier strike groups in the region and four destroyers and an amphibious warship in the eastern Mediterranean. One carrier group and one destroyer had been scheduled to leave but were told to stay.
Navy officials say it costs about $25 million a week for the carrier group and $2 million a week for each destroyer.
