US To Send 500 More Soldiers To Saudi Arabia Amid Rising Tensions With Iran - Reports

The United States is preparing to send hundreds of additional soldiers to Saudi Arabia in a bid to shore up the kingdom's defenses amid rising tensions with Iran, US media reported on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th July, 2019) The United States is preparing to send hundreds of additional soldiers to Saudi Arabia in a bid to shore up the kingdom's defenses amid rising tensions with Iran, US media reported on Thursday.

At least 500 soldiers will be deployed to the Prince Sultan Air Base east of Riyadh, CNN reported, citing two US defense officials.

The soldiers will join a small number of US troops and support staff who are already on the ground to prepare for a Patriot missile defense battery and runway and airfield improvements, the report said.

The 500 new forces are part of the deployment of 1,000 additional troops that the Trump administration last month announced it would send to the middle East, the report said.

The Pentagon and Riyadh have both refrained from specifying that 500 of those soldiers would be sent to Saudi Arabia due to sensitivities about having American troops stationed in the kingdom, according to the report.

The military buildup was prompted by US intelligence reports that Iran was preparing attacks against American interests, including attacks on ships leaving the Persian Gulf.