Defense Secretary Robert Gates is in the Middle East talking about a buildup of troops, not just in Iraq, but across the entire Persian Gulf region:
KABUL, Jan 15 ? Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Monday that Iran was ?acting in a very negative way? in the Middle East and that the United States was building up its forces to demonstrate its resolve to remain in the Persian Gulf.
?The Iranians clearly believe that we are tied down in Iraq, that they have the initiative, that they?re in a position to press us in many ways,? Mr. Gates said, speaking to reporters at NATO headquarters in Brussels before flying here. ?We are simply trying to communicate to the region that we are going to be there for a long time.?
Delivering that message to Iran ? and to allies in the region worried that Washington is consumed with stabilizing Iraq ? is one of Mr. Gates?s priorities on a trip to the region this week that will take him later to the Persian Gulf.
Senior Pentagon officials said they also plan to stress to the largely-Sunni Arab governments worried about Iran that they must assist the United States in Iraq with reconstruction aid and with putting pressure on fellow Sunnis to reach political reconciliation.
President Bush announced last week, in his speech laying his new Iraq strategy, that he was also sending a second aircraft carrier and several Patriot anti-missile batteries to the Persian Gulf.
?The United States has had a strong presence in the Gulf for a long time,? Mr. Gates. ?We are simply reaffirming that? with the buildup, he said.
It would seem that some in Washington have concluded that a confrontation with Iran is, at some point, inevitable.
