00:00Sir, there's a report that you're moving U.S. troops out of Bahrain and Kuwait.
00:04Are troops being moved out of the Middle East?
00:07Sir, go ahead.
00:09What prompted you to call out the strikes last night?
00:12I was asked to by Saudi Arabia, by UAE, by Qatar, and by Iran.
00:20We were all set to go. It's about at this time right now.
00:25And it would have been a massive attack.
00:28We were all set to go.
00:30But when the Allies ask to call it off, you've got to sort of say, well, let's see.
00:37And the reason they ask is I think there's a deal.
00:40There's a deal on Hormuz, and then there will be a deal on the nuclear,
00:44or you might call it the denuclearization of Iran.
00:47I call it the denuclearization of Iran.
00:50What should we expect?
00:51We're holding it. We'll just see.
00:53We can do it any time we want.
00:56But we were asked by the three primary groups.
01:02We were also asked by Iran, very strongly, actually.
01:05They said, we'd like to make a deal now.
01:07You know, I don't know what they say, because a lot of times they'll say that to me,
01:10and then they'll go out and say, we don't know what he's talking about.
01:12Obviously, they don't want to be attacked.
01:15And they knew the extent of the attack because they saw it forming.
01:19What happens now?
01:21Well, now what we're doing is we're talking to them in the form of a negotiation.
01:25It begins tomorrow afternoon, and we'll see if it's you.
01:29I'd love to do that, save a lot of lives, save a lot of unnecessary power, to be honest with
01:36you.
01:36It would take many, many years to ever build it back.
01:39If it could, I don't think it would be even buildable.
01:41But so we had a, we had an attack that would be the biggest attack since World War II.
01:48And it would have been disastrous for them.
01:52And they didn't want us to do it.
01:54And frankly, Saudi Arabia didn't want it either.
01:57They thought that the deal is imminent.
02:01And the deal is imminent having to do with the Hormuz Strait,
02:05and also the, ultimately, the denuclearization of it.
02:10And so when I hear that, I say, well, do we want to go and be this?
02:15Now, there's a group of people that would like me to just do it.
02:18And there's another group of people that does not want me to do it.
02:22Does Iran have a deadline to come to an agreement?
02:26No, we'll just see how it is.
02:28We're ready to go any time we want.
02:31Would I rather make a deal?
02:32I'm not looking to kill people.
02:34Because people die, a lot of people die.
02:37And we don't want that.
02:38And so they asked us, Iran specifically.
02:42But the other three said we really, I asked them.
02:45I asked Saudi Arabia, the king.
02:46They said, the crown prince.
02:49I said, what would you rather do?
02:51Would you rather have us do this or not?
02:53They said, we would much prefer a deal as opposed to an attack.
02:58Because you don't know where these attacks lead.
03:00I mean, will they be flooded with people pouring into their country and disaster?
03:05A lot of better things can happen.
03:08Sir, there's a report that you're moving U.S. troops out of Bahrain and Kuwait.
03:12Are troops being moved out of the Middle East?
03:19The military balance in the Gulf may be entering a new phase.
03:24Following months of repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks on U.S. facilities across the region,
03:30reports indicate Washington is reviewing whether its long-standing military posture in the Gulf remains sustainable.
03:38Instead, public reporting points to internal planning and reassessment rather than an executed redeployment.
03:46According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal,
03:49U.S. military planners are examining ways to reduce the vulnerability of key bases
03:54that have repeatedly come under Iranian attack.
03:58One focus is naval support activity Bahrain, home to the U.S. 5th Fleet.
04:03Satellite imagery cited in the report suggested more extensive damage than had been publicly acknowledged following Iranian strikes.
04:12Officials familiar with internal discussions reportedly said the Pentagon is considering upgrades,
04:19including hardened infrastructure, underground command facilities, and changes to the base's long-term layout.
04:26The review is not limited to Bahrain.
04:29Military planners are also said to be evaluating whether the American footprint in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia should eventually be
04:37reduced,
04:38with some functions potentially relocated farther from Iran's missile range.
04:43No final decision has been publicly announced.
04:46The reassessment reflects a broader reality emerging from the conflict.
04:51For decades, large American bases close to the Gulf provided rapid military access across the Middle East.
04:59But precision-guided missiles, drones, and long-range strike capabilities have increasingly challenged that model.
05:07Iran's strategy has relied on repeated waves of relatively lower-cost drones and missiles,
05:13forcing the United States and its partners to respond with expensive interceptor systems.
05:19Military analysts say this creates an asymmetric challenge.
05:23Defending every incoming threat consumes significant resources, while maintaining continuous readiness places growing pressure on personnel,
05:33logistics, and interceptor stockpiles.
05:36Earlier this year, the United States conducted precautionary relocations of some non-essential personnel
05:43and military families from parts of the Gulf as tensions escalated.
05:48But U.S. forces remain active across the region.
05:52American naval operations continue in the Gulf, while air defense missions remain in place to protect U.S. personnel and
05:59regional partners.
06:00Officials have stressed that any future basing changes would require extensive coordination with host governments,
06:08complex logistical planning, and careful consideration of regional security commitments.
06:14Analysts argue that the current debate is less about retreat and more about adaptation.
06:19Rather than relying on large, fixed installations close to potential threats, future operations may emphasize dispersed facilities,
06:29hardened infrastructure, and greater operational flexibility.
06:33For Iran, repeated strikes have demonstrated an ability to challenge heavily defended military facilities
06:40and impose additional costs on American operations.
06:44For Washington, the lesson may be that future regional deployments must account for evolving missile and drone threats
06:52that were less prominent when many of these bases were originally established.
06:56For now, the evidence points to a military reassessment, not a confirmed withdrawal,
07:02as the United States evaluates how best to protect its forces while maintaining its strategic presence across the Gulf.
07:22For more information, visit www.unindia.com.au
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