America doesn’t not intend to end military presence in the Middle East.
In an interview with a Saudi media outlet, US Deputy Secretary of State Joey Hood said that Washington’s security partnership in the West Asian region will continue.
“We are committed to ensuring the freedom of shipping to prevent the instability of the global economy,” Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arabiya network quoted Hood as saying at a meeting on “Security in the Middle East” on Wednesday.
The Deputy Secretary of State also said that the United States is adapting to changing conditions and threats in the region, and that a small number of US troops in the region are training partners.
America has reduced its troop numbers in West Asia over the past year and has recently withdrawn Patriot systems from Saudi Arabia; An action that worries Riyadh, especially since Saudi Arabia has been involved in the war with Yemen for nearly seven years, and from time to time it launches missile and drone strikes on positions and targets inside Saudi territory.
