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Home Front: WoT
Air Force official says US to maintain presence in Mideast
2021-11-14
[AlAhram] The top US Air Force general in the Mideast said Saturday that American airmen would continue to be stationed in the region even as military planners consider competition with China and Russia as Washington's next major challenge.

Speaking to journalists ahead of the Dubai Airshow, Lt. Gen. Gregory Guillot acknowledged that presence ``could adjust`` after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August. The US Air Force operates a major base in nearby Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi...
, which oversaw operations in Afghanistan, as well as Iraq and Syria.

``But I don't see any scenario where the United States does not have an important role,'' Guillot said.

Guillot's comments come as tensions remain high between Iran
...The nation is noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence...
and the US after years of confrontations following then-President Donald Trump
...Perhaps no man has ever had as much fun being president of the US...
's decision to unilaterally withdraw America from Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers. Israel meanwhile is suspected of launching a series of attacks targeting Iran's atomic program.

As talks over the deal remain stalled, Iran elected a hard-line protege of the country's supreme leader as president and has itself seized vessels at sea and is suspected of launching drone attacks.

Guillot several times declined to directly attribute recent drone attacks in the region to Iran, though he acknowledged the rising number of such assaults in the region.

``The collaborative defense of multiple countries, you know, in the region is going to be our key to detecting those and staying one step ahead of the threat as it evolves,'' he said after appearing at the Dubai International Air Chiefs' Conference.

Russia is expected to display its Sukhoi Su-75 Checkmate fighter jet at the Dubai Airshow this week. It's a direct competitor to the American F-35 fighter, which the United Arab Emirates has been trying to buy since diplomatically recognizing Israel last year. That sale has slowed under President Joe The Big Guy Biden
...46th president of the U.S. Former Senator-for-Life from Delaware, an example of the kind of top-notch Washington intellect hacked up by the World's Greatest Deliberative Body. The guy who single-handedly lost Afghanistan...
's administration.

Asked about the Checkmate, Guillot said he hoped that US allies and partners would use equipment that would be ``interoperable'' with the American military. He said buying the Russia fighter ``absolutely'' would affect that.

During his presentation, Guillot displayed a graphic that included the Israeli flag among others in the region. The American military now considers Israel as falling under US Central Command due to the recent recognition deals. Bahrain and the UAE just conducted a joint drill with the US Navy and Israel in the Red Sea.

Guillot said air drills with Israel and those nations could happen as well.
Posted by:trailing wife

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