Trump says US is not putting troops in Middle East region

2026-03-19 - 19:30

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested ​he was not looking at ‌deploying soldiers to the Middle East with the Iran war heading toward a fourth week. “I’m ​not putting troops anywhere,” Trump ​said in response to a reporter who ⁠asked whether he was planning to ​send more service members to the ​region. “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you. But I’m not putting troops. We will ​do whatever is necessary.” Trump spoke ​at the White House during an Oval Office ‌meeting ⁠with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Reuters reported on Wednesday that the Trump administration is considering deploying thousands of U.S. ​troops to ​reinforce the ⁠Iran operation, citing a U.S. official and three people ​familiar with the matter. Thirteen U.S. ​troops ⁠have been killed since Iran launched strikes against U.S. military bases following the ⁠start ​of the conflict on ​February 28.