India

New Delhi, October 3, 2026. Indian media, led by the Times of India and NDTV, are treating the matter as a movement of forces. According to the Times of India, citing the Wall Street Journal, the United States is sending a third aircraft carrier group and additional Marine Corps ships to the Middle East, totaling around 9,000 to 10,000 men. NDTV specifies that the USS Theodore Roosevelt and its group will arrive by the end of November, with two other aircraft carriers, the USS George HW Bush and the USS George Washington, already in place.

The Times of India details the schedule: the Theodore Roosevelt left San Diego on Sunday for a scheduled deployment, the amphibious group Makin Island, with the 13th Expeditionary Unit Marines, on Monday. The crews are preparing for a longer-than-usual deployment, according to Navy officials. If the Washington remains in the region, it would be the first time since April that three aircraft carrier groups are present. The daily also notes a "relative lull" in direct combat in recent days, while Washington prepares for a resumption of hostilities.

The political aspect comes from the agency republished by The Hindu Business Line. On Thursday, October 1, Donald Trump stated that if Iran was linked to the FlyDubai copilot who stabbed the captain, it would be hit "very hard": "Oh they'll be hit, very hard, don't worry". Asked about a link with Tehran, he replied that "the answer, based on what I'm hearing, is yes, but we're working on it right now", without explaining his suspicions. The plane, which was carrying over 180 people, was able to land in Saudi Arabia.

Diplomacy has taken a back seat. Iranian officials indicated on Wednesday, September 30, that they had received an official US response to their latest proposal to end the seven-month-old war, which Trump had publicly rejected a few days earlier; they did not say if it was negative. In an interview with Time magazine published on Thursday, Trump asserts that he will not accept proposals that he "would not have approved a year ago" and does not rule out resuming bombings after the US election on November 3.

The Times of India adds that the Navy aims to enforce its blockade and ensure security in the region. Indian coverage remains factual and focused on the means employed, without commentary on the consequences for Indian oil imports or the security of the Strait of Hormuz.