The US Secretary of Defense in a visit to the middle east
With the aim of preventing the expansion of the scope of the war, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin began his visit to the region, and this visit came after the proliferation of attacks in the Red Sea with drones launched from territory controlled by the Houthis, which began to threaten international maritime navigation at Bab al Mandab strait.
Austin’s tour includes Bahrain, Qatar, and Israel, in an effort to set a timetable for ending the war or moving it to a less severe stage, amid a dispute with Israel, which wants to continue for months, with the aim of eliminating Hamas.
Austin wrote on X, that his visit also aims to affirm the United States’ commitments to strengthening regional security and stability, and to work with partners and allies to enhance defense capabilities.
Austin is expected to visit the aircraft carrier Gerald Ford in the eastern Mediterranean, while The United States has intensified its presence in the region, which currently has 19 warships, including 7 in the Mediterranean Sea and 12 in the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf, to prevent the risk of a broader regional conflict.
The deputy of the Iranian Army Air Forces, Brigadier General Mehdi Hadian, said that his country is ready to respond to any threats, amid renewed fears in Iran of a direct war with America following Houthi attacks against commercial ships.
Meanwhile, the Revolutionary Guards tested a new anti-ship missile in the Persian Gulf.
