Washington (CNN) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo abruptly canceled a scheduled trip to Germany, where he was planning to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel "due to pressing issues," the State Department said early Tuesday.

No specific reason was given for the cancellation. The press pool traveling with Pompeo has not been told where they are going next, and have been warned they may not be able to report from the country they are going to until after their departure.

"Unfortunately, we must reschedule the Berlin meetings due to pressing issues. We look forward to rescheduling this important set of meetings. The Secretary looks forward to being in Berlin soon," State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said, according to the press pool traveling with Pompeo.

The sudden schedule change comes two days after the Pentagon deployed a carrier and a bomber task force to the Middle East, in response to "specific and credible" intelligence that suggested Iranian forces and proxies were planning to target US forces in Syria, Iraq and at sea.

The carrier group has been ordered to Strait of Hormuz in order to send a deterrent message to Iran, US officials said Sunday. The move is likely to heighten tensions as Tehran explicitly warned the US in April against any moves to block or interfere with the Strait. The 21-mile-wide waterway separates Iran from other Gulf countries and is a crucial conduit for the global economy, with 30% of the world's crude oil passing through it.

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