Navy warship deployed on U.S.-Mexico border mission amid Trump immigration crackdown
Navy warship USS Gravely is on a mission to strengthen security at the U.S.-Mexico border, Pentagon officials said.
Why it matters: The deployment of the guided-missile destroyer that last year was involved in shooting down Iran-backed Houthi rebels' ship attacks in the Middle East to a region the U.S. Coast Guard ordinarily covers marks an escalation in the Trump administration's immigration crackdown efforts at the border.
Ready for Tasking! USS Gravely (DDG 107) departed Naval Weapons Station Yorktown for deployment in support of U.S....
Posted by U.S. Navy onΒ Sunday, March 16, 2025
Driving the news: The USS Gravely departed Virginia's Naval Weapons Station Yorktown Saturday for the Navy's U.S. Northern Command Area of Responsibility, per a statement from the combatant command.
- This area encompasses the continental U.S., Alaska, Canada, Mexico and the surrounding waterΒ out to some 500 nautical miles.
- USNORTHCOM was named "operational lead for the employment of U.S. military forces" to carry out President Trump's border executive orders and the ship "brings maritime capabilities" in response to these and a national emergency declaration, it notes.
- The combatant command is filling "critical capabilities gaps in support" of the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection, according to the statement, which does not elaborate further on this.
Zoom in: The USS Gravely is participating as part of the Defense Department's response to President Trump's executive order on the border to "protect the United States' territorial integrity, sovereignty, and security," per a statement from Gen. Gregory Guillot, Commander, U.S. Northern Command.
- It's contributing "to a coordinated and robust response to combating maritime related terrorism, weapons proliferation, transnational crime, piracy, environmental destruction, and illegal seaborne immigration," according to USNORTHCOM.
- Adm. Daryl Caudle, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Northern Command, added in a statement the deployment "marks a vital enhancement to our nation's border security framework."
What we're watching: A Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET), specialized, deployable maritime law enforcement teams of the USGS, "will be embarked aboard Gravel," per USNORTHCOM.
- These teams carry out missions including to counter piracy, military combat operations, stop undocumented immigrants, "military force protection, counter terrorism, homeland security, and humanitarian response," per the statement.
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