US to Send 1,000 Additional Troops to Middle East
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan announced Monday that the Pentagon will deploy about 1,000 more troops to the Middle East for “defensive purposes” in response to “hostile behavior by Iranian forces and their proxy groups”
IsraelDefense
| 18/06/2019
President Trump with Acting Defense Secretary Shanahan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dunford (Archive photo: AP)
The United States will send 1,000 additional US forces and more military resources to the Middle East amid escalating tensions with Iran, the Pentagon announced Monday.
“In response to a request from the US Central Command for additional forces, and with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in consultation with the White House, I have authorized approximately 1,000 additional troops for defensive purposes to address air, naval, and ground-based threats in the Middle East,” acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said in a statement.
“The recent Iranian attacks validate the reliable, credible intelligence we have received on hostile behavior by Iranian forces and their proxy groups that threaten United States personnel and interests across the region,” Shanahan said, adding that the “United States does not seek conflict with Iran.”
The move comes just days after the attacks on the oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, which the US says were carried out by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the administration was considering a “full range” of options to counter Iranian aggression, including a possible military strike.
[Sources: CNN, CBS News]
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan announced Monday that the Pentagon will deploy about 1,000 more troops to the Middle East for “defensive purposes” in response to “hostile behavior by Iranian forces and their proxy groups”
President Trump with Acting Defense Secretary Shanahan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dunford (Archive photo: AP)
The United States will send 1,000 additional US forces and more military resources to the Middle East amid escalating tensions with Iran, the Pentagon announced Monday.
“In response to a request from the US Central Command for additional forces, and with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and in consultation with the White House, I have authorized approximately 1,000 additional troops for defensive purposes to address air, naval, and ground-based threats in the Middle East,” acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said in a statement.
“The recent Iranian attacks validate the reliable, credible intelligence we have received on hostile behavior by Iranian forces and their proxy groups that threaten United States personnel and interests across the region,” Shanahan said, adding that the “United States does not seek conflict with Iran.”
The move comes just days after the attacks on the oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, which the US says were carried out by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the administration was considering a “full range” of options to counter Iranian aggression, including a possible military strike.
[Sources: CNN, CBS News]
