On February 17, 2026, Iran's Supreme Leader mocked U.S. military boasts and dismissed President Trump's claims of superiority, noting America's 47-year failure to topple his regime. This came hours after the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world's largest carrier, began steaming to join the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East, with over 50 U.S. fighter jets repositioned amid indirect nuclear talks in Geneva showing some progress. While U.S. figures like Nikki Haley called negotiations futile and demanded strict compliance, both sides frame the naval buildup as deterrence, with no conflict erupting yet.