US says it’s not seeking war with Iran
After Jordan attack killed 3 Americans
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed on Monday that the United States would take “all necessary actions” to defend its troops after a deadly drone attack by Iran-backed militants, even as US President Joe Biden’s administration stressed it was not seeking a war with Iran.
The attack on Jan. 28 killed three US soldiers and wounded more than 40 troops.
It was the first deadly strike against US forces since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in October, and marks a major escalation in tensions that have engulfed the Middle East.
“Let me start with my outrage and sorrow (for) the deaths of three brave US troops in Jordan and for the other troops who were wounded,” Austin said at the Pentagon.
“The President and I will not tolerate attacks on US forces, and we will take all necessary actions to defend the US and our troops,” Austin added at the start of a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the Pentagon.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said: “As the president said yesterday, we will respond and that response could be multi-leveled, come in stages and be sustained over time.”
But officials across the Biden administration said they did not want the situation to escalate.
The Pentagon suggested Iran did not want a war either.
“We certainly don’t seek a war and, frankly, we don’t see Iran wanting to seek a war with the US,” Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters.
US troops have been attacked more than 150 times in Iraq, Syria and Jordan, as well as on warships in the Red Sea, where Houthi fighters in Yemen have been firing drones and missiles at them.