US Secretary for Defence, Lloyd Austin will travel to the Gulf in the next days for talks with government leaders in the region.
A US Department of Defence official said that the Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will assure Gulf countries of the US commitment to security in the region. Austin will also stress the need to refrain from normalisation with the Assad regime in Syria. The United States is committed to diplomatic means and sanctions to counter Iran’s nuclear file.
The source, speaking to Al Jazeera, said that the US focus on China does not mean leaving the Middle East noting that the US still maintains tens of thousands of troops at a number of bases. It was these bases and partnerships with the Gulf region that allowed for the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the source added.
Prior to Austin’s visit, a group of the US and GCC officials met in Riyadh in a meeting of the Iran Working Group, which published a joint statement condemning a range of aggressive and dangerous Iranian policies and calling Iran to follow a diplomatic path.
Austin will visit the UAE to coordinate positions on Iran before talks resume in Vienna on 29 November. He is also addressing the International Institute for Strategic Studies Manama Dialogue in Bahrain while participating in bilateral meetings with US allies and partners attending the conference.
Commenting on the Gulf countries relations with the Syrian regime, the source said that the Syrian regime was able to survive due to support from Iran and Russia. The US is firm in its rejection of normalising relations with the Assad regime. The current strategy for the US is to use sanctions to deter any entities or investments that benefit the Assad regime.
