With bases in Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, the United States maintains a military presence throughout the main oil-producing area.
Asserting that “it could be a dangerous place,” US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that US forces were being evacuated from the Middle East and that the US will not permit Iran to possess nuclear weapons.
US and Iraqi officials told Reuters early Wednesday that the US is planning to partially evacuate its Iraqi embassy and will permit military dependents to go from places throughout the Middle East because of increased security threats in the area.
Reports of the possible evacuation caused oil prices to rise by more than 4%, and the four US and two Iraqi sources did not specify which security threats led to the decision.
The State Department has approved voluntary withdrawals from Bahrain and Kuwait, according to a U.S. official.
On Wednesday night, the State Department revised its global travel advisory to take into account the most recent US stance. “On June 11, the Department of State ordered the departure of non-emergency US government personnel due to heightened regional tensions,” the alert stated.
At a time when tensions are high in the area, the United States has decided to remove some personnel. According to US intelligence, Israel has been preparing for an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, and Trump’s attempts to negotiate a nuclear agreement with Iran seem to be at a standstill.
“They are being moved out because it could be a dangerous place, and we’ll see what happens,” Trump stated to reporters. “We’ve given notice to move out.”
Trump responded, “They can’t have a nuclear weapon,” when asked whether there was anything that could be done to cool the area. They just cannot own a nuclear weapon.
Trump said in an interview aired earlier Wednesday that he was becoming less certain that Tehran would agree to halt enriching uranium, a crucial American requirement, and that he would strike Iran if stalled talks over its nuclear program fail.
Aziz Nasirzadeh, the Iranian defense minister, also declared on Wednesday that Iran would bomb US bases in the area in retaliation if it were attacked.
According to a statement sent by the US embassy in Kuwait on Wednesday, it has “not changed its staffing posture and remains fully operational.”
MILITARY PRESENCE
With bases in Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, the United States maintains a military presence throughout the main oil-producing area.
According to a US official, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approved the voluntary evacuation of military dependents from various Middle Eastern sites. According to another US official, it primarily applies to family members who live in Bahrain, where the majority of them are stationed.
The US embassy in Baghdad is scheduled to withdraw under an order from the State Department. The US military is ready to assist if needed, but the goal is to accomplish it commercially,” a third US official stated.
According to a government source quoted by Iraq’s main news agency, Baghdad has not detected any security signals requiring an evacuation.
The largest US military base in the Middle East, Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, was working normally, according to another US official, and no evacuation orders had been issued for staff or families associated with the US embassy in Qatar.
TENSIONS
Following news of the departure of Baghdad, oil futures increased by $3, with Brent crude futures trading at $69.18 per barrel.
Britain’s maritime service issued a warning earlier on Wednesday that heightened Middle East tensions could result in a rise in military action that could affect shipping in vital waterways. It cautioned ships passing through the Straits of Hormuz, the Gulf, and the Gulf of Oman, all of which border Iran.
In response to the US actions, Britain’s Foreign Office stated that it was keeping an eye on the situation and will continue to evaluate its embassy in Iraq.
Although armed groups supported by Tehran are associated with its security forces, Iraq, a rare regional ally of both the United States and its fiercest regional adversary Iran, is home to 2,500 US troops.
Although attacks have decreased since last year, tensions within Iraq have increased since the conflict in Gaza began in October 2023 due to recurrent attacks on US troops by armed groups with ties to Iran.
Additionally, Israel and Iran engaged in two rounds of gunfire last year, the first direct encounters between the two most powerful adversaries in the area, with war drones and missiles flying across Iraqi territory.
Leading regional ally of the US Israel has also attacked sites in the region that are associated with Iran, such as Iraqi armed groups that operate in both Iraq and neighboring Syria.
The United States has extended the deployment of a second aircraft carrier, which has since left, and deployed additional military assets in the Middle East in recent months, including B-2 bombers, which have subsequently been replaced.
In the days leading up to the next round of nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran, Iran is anticipated to submit a counterproposal following its rejection of a Washington offer.
The United States has always used a military threat in its negotiation strategies with Iran, a senior Iranian official told Reuters.
“Any military action against Iran, whether by the US or Israel, will have serious consequences,” the official stated.
“Threats of ‘overwhelming force’ won’t change facts: Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon and US militarism only fuels instability,” the Iranian U.N. mission wrote on X on Wednesday.
The speech seemed to be a reaction to a previous statement made by US Army General Michael “Erik” Kurilla, who was in charge of US Central Command, stating that he had given the president “a wide range of options” to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Due to Middle East tensions, Kurilla postponed his hearing before US senators on Thursday, according to two other US sources.
