The United States has announced the deployment of 1,500 troops to the Middle East, describing it as an effort to bolster defences against Iran as it accused the country’s Revolutionary Guards of direct responsibility for this month’s oil tanker attacks.
President Donald Trump’s administration also invoked the threat from Iran to declare a national security-related emergency that would clear the sale of billions of dollars worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other countries without required congressional approval.
The actions were the latest by the Trump administration as it highlighted what it saw as a threat of potential attack by Iran, and followed decisions to speed the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group as well as send bombers and additional Patriot missiles to the Middle East.
A senior Iranian military official responded by claiming Iran can sink US warships sent to the Gulf region using missiles and „secret weapons“.
„America … is sending two warships to the region,“ General Morteza Qorbani, an adviser to Iran’s military command, told semi-official news agency Mizan.
Western experts say Iran often exaggerates its weapons capabilities, although there are concerns about its missile program.
The US deployments, decried by Iran as escalatory, came amid a freeze in direct communication between the US and Iran that raised concerns about the increasing risk of an inadvertent conflict.
Mr Trump, however, described the latest deployments as defensive in nature.
The 1,500 troops include personnel manning missile defence systems, aerial surveillance to spot threats and engineers to fortify defences. It also includes a fighter jet squadron.
„We want to have protection in the Middle East. We’re going to be sending a relatively small number of troops, mostly protective,“ Mr Trump said.
The decision on troops marks a reversal of sorts for Mr Trump, who only on Thursday said he thought no more forces were needed. He has sought to detangle the US military from open-ended conflicts in places like Syria and Afghanistan.
The deployment is relatively small compared with the about 70,000 American troops now stationed across a region that stretches from Egypt to Afghanistan. In addition, around 600 of the 1,500 „new“ troops are already in the Middle East manning Patriot missiles, but will see their deployments extended.
Still, the Democratic politician who heads the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, said the deployment „appears to be a blatant and heavy-handed move to further escalate tensions with Iran“.
US accuses Iran of oil tanker attacks
Rear Admiral Michael Gilday, the director of the Joint Staff, accused Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) of being directly responsible for attacks on tankers off the United Arab Emirates earlier this month, in what could be a foreshadowing of the conclusion of ongoing investigations into the incident.
„The attack against the shipping in Fujairah, we attribute it to the IRGC,“ he said, explaining that the Pentagon attributed limpet mines used in the attack directly to the IRGC.
He declined to describe „the means of delivery“ of the mines, however.
A Norwegian-registered oil products tanker and a UAE fuel bunker barge were among four vessels hit near Fujairah emirate, one of the world’s largest bunkering hubs located just outside the Strait of Hormuz.
The Pentagon did not provide evidence to support its claims but said it hoped to further declassify intelligence supporting them. Iran has dismissed the accusations entirely and accused the US of brinkmanship with its troop deployments.
Mr Trump played down the potential for military conflict in the region, saying he believed Iran did not want a confrontation with the US — even as Washington tightened sanctions with a goal of pushing Iran to make concessions beyond the terms of its 2015 nuclear deal.
Mr Trump pulled out of the international deal between Iran and six major world powers last year.
„Right now, I don’t think Iran wants to fight. And I certainly don’t think they want to fight with us,“ Mr Trump said.
„But they cannot have nuclear weapons. They can’t have nuclear weapons. And they understand that.“
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