SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The United States is cutting the number of troops and air defense units deployed to the Middle East, the Pentagon said on Friday.
Pentagon spokesperson commander Jessica McNulty said some of the units were being redeployed to other countries and some were returning to the United States for maintenance, according to AFP.
“This decision was made in close coordination with host nations and with a clear eye on preserving our ability to meet our security commitments,” she said.
“It’s about maintaining some of our high demand, low density assets so they are ready for future requirements in the event of a contingency,” she added.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the Patriot anti-missile batteries were being removed from Iraq, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The Journal said another anti-system, called THAAD, was being transferred from Saudi Arabia as well.
Each battery requires hundreds of troops and civilians to operate and support them, AFP reported.
CNN cited a defense official as saying that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin instructed the commander of U.S. Central Command to remove the forces this summer.
The United States had deployed Patriot missiles to Saudi Arabia and Iraq to counter the threat posed by Iran and its proxies in the region.
The removal of forces from Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries comes as part of a broader drawdown in the region, according to CNN.
A U.S. official told AP in May that the United States was pulling two Patriot missile batteries and some fighter aircraft out of Saudi Arabia.
AP also reported that two other Patriot batteries that were in the Middle East regions were also heading home to the U.S., in a planned redeployment for maintenance and upgrades.
The change reflects a broad shift within the Department of Defense to focus its efforts on countering China and Russia as the threats of the future, moving away from the wars of the past in the Middle East.
