More than two dozen U.S. Air Force KC-135R and KC-46A tankers took off from bases across the U.S. and headed east over the Atlantic, The War Zone reported earlier. The U.S. Navy's aircraft carrier USS Nimitz has also appeared to be heading toward the Middle East from Asia.

“If the Middle East is unstable, the world will not be at peace,” Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday. “If the conflict escalates further, not only will the conflicting parties suffer greater losses, but regional countries will also suffer greatly.”