Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday that the United States "will respond" if Iran-sponsored groups don't stop attacking American forces in the Middle East.
During a Senate hearing on national security and aid to Israel and Ukraine, Austin was asked by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, about a report from The New York Times stating that "Iranian-backed terrorists continue to attack U.S. forces in the region."
Austin said, "First of all, let me emphasize that the protection, the safety of our troops and our civilians is of utmost importance to me and of utmost importance to the president as well."
He added that U.S. forces have "taken a number of steps to make sure that we increase our force protection posture," which includes the deployment of "a number of assets into the region as well."
Austin said that the U.S. has "been clear" and President Joe Biden has "been clear and I have been clear right here, that if that if this doesn't stop, then we will respond. And so we maintain the right to respond. We have the capability to do that. And we will respond at a time and place of our choosing."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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