Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is on a trip to the Middle East this week to meet with counterparts regarding regional tension and the global impact of Russia's war in Ukraine.
Austin, whose trip will include stops in Jordan, Egypt, and Israel, is going to reiterate to Middle Eastern partners that the United States "remains committed to supporting their defense and increasing and strengthening the strategic partnerships with each of these countries," a senior Pentagon official told reporters on Friday.
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"Secretary Austin will talk about, with each partner, the tremendous opportunities that we have because of cutting-edge innovation, emerging technology, shared assessments of what the threats are facing our partners in the region, [and] that now is the time to improve collective and shared defense," the official said.
One of the main themes of Austin’s interactions with his counterparts will center on Iran. Even as the State Department’s efforts to get Tehran back in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal stall, the Department of Defense has been preparing for “the full constellation of Iran-associated threats," the official continued, including "Iranian cultivation of nonstate actors and proxies through its arming, training, and funding of violent proxies that threaten our forces, that threaten many of our partners such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Iranian aggression at sea, cyber threats, and also air threats, obviously one-way attack drones and Iran's ballistic missile program.”
Another major topic will be the threat from Iran, both in the region and globally, as the U.S. has accused Tehran of providing Russia with lethal aid for its war in Ukraine, while White House officials have warned in recent weeks that their relationship is strengthening.
A top Defense Department official, undersecretary Colin Kahl, told lawmakers last week that in 2018, it would've taken Iran roughly a year to produce "one bomb's worth of fissile material," while now, "it would take about 12 days."
“He will obviously be speaking about the unprovoked war of choice by Russia and Ukraine,” the unnamed senior official added. “He will share his views about the imperative of increasing support to Ukraine now. He will also talk about the strategic implications of increasing Russian-Iranian military cooperation, which right now is killing Ukrainians but, eventually, will come back with significant and negative security consequences for the Middle East.”
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Austin's trip to Israel comes during a recent tense period between Israelis and Palestinians, and he will look to work with leaders of both to calm the situation.
"Obviously, in Israel, he will reaffirm his ironclad commitment to Israel's security and Israel's inherent right to self-defense," the official added. "He will consult on the way forward with respect to Iran and how we approach the constellation of threats you heard me speak about. He'll also be quite frank with Israeli leaders about his concerns regarding the cycle of violence in the West Bank and consult on what steps Israeli leaders can take to meaningfully restore calm before the upcoming holidays."