In Bahrain, US SecDef Vows to Counter Iran

US 'committed to a diplomatic outcome'

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was in Bahrain this weekend, trying to convince them, and by extension the Gulf alliance, that the US is going to counter everything he accused Iran of doing.

This started with lip service to Iran’s civilian nuclear program, saying the US is committed to a diplomatic outcome. Austin added that the US would never allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons.

Not mentioned is that Iran is plainly not seeking nuclear weapons. With the Gulf nations and Israel both gearing up for military action, they want the US to echo the false conclusions they made long ago.

Austin also lashed Iran’s “dangerous” export of drones to its allies across the Middle East. This, too, ignored that the United States is also exporting attack drones to its own partners in the region.

Austin added that “our friends and foes both know that the United States can deploy overwhelming force at the time and place of our choosing.” Israel and the Gulf states are both well aware of that, and have been trying to connive a way to get the US to launch such a war.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.