The United States has dispatched the only weapon capable of destroying Iran's underground nuclear facilities, the massive bomb "bunker buster GBU-57," aboard the Air Force B-2 stealth bombers from the mainland.
On the 21st (local time), Reuters reported, citing multiple officials, that "U.S. Air Force B-2 bombers are moving from the mainland to Guam." According to one of them, there has not yet been an order to "move further beyond Guam."
The New York Times (NYT) also reported that several B-2 bombers took off from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri that day and are heading west across the Pacific. Flight tracking data indicates that the B-2 bombers have flown with refueling aircraft during some flight segments.
Fox News reported that a total of six B-2 bombers are on the move, analyzing that these aircraft likely took off with heavy munitions on board without being fully fueled. The bunker buster bomb was mentioned as the munitions in question.
Developed in the U.S., the bunker buster GBU-57, weighing about 13.6 tons, is considered the only weapon capable of destroying Iran's nuclear facilities built deep in the mountainous region of Fordow without ground warfare. The B-2 bomber can carry two GBU-57s, and during an attack, this bomb performs high-precision strikes based on the Global Positioning System (GPS).
According to Reuters, experts and officials are monitoring whether these bombers will move to the U.S.-British military base on Diego Garcia Island in the Indian Ocean, which is an ideal location for operations in the Middle East.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been deliberating whether to strike Iranian nuclear facilities directly, proposed a "two-week negotiation deadline" to Iran on the 19th.
President Trump is currently staying at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, and plans to return to Washington, D.C., later that evening to convene the National Security Council (NSC).
However, there are also points raised that the takeoff of the B-2 bombers does not necessarily indicate President Trump's final decision regarding a strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.
The NYT reported, "It is a common measure to move military assets to provide options to the president and military commanders," noting that "the B-2 may also not be deployed for an actual attack."