LOC22:28
19:28 GMT
WASHINGTON, May 24 (KUNA) -- US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he will dispatch additional 1,500 soldiers to the Middle East.
Prior to his departure to Japan, Trump said the deployment was "relatively small".
The US is to send additional troops to the Middle East to counter the "ongoing threat posed by Iranian forces", US acting defense secretary said in a separate statement.
Congress has been notified about the plans, Patrick Shanahan said in a statement.
Fighter jets, weapons and 1,500 troops will all be deployed.
Tensions rose this month, and the US sent an aircraft carrier to the Gulf.
Earlier, President Trump told reporters outside the White House that a "relatively small" deployment had been approved.
"We want to have protection in the Middle East," he said, adding that the extra troops would be "mostly protective." (end)
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