US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Jordan on Sunday, kicking off a Middle East tour that will also include Israel and Egypt and is meant to show US support for key allies in the region in the face of what US officials described as the "growing threat posed by Iran".
Austin wrote on Twitter before his departure that he would meet with senior officials and "reaffirm the United States' commitment to regional stability and to advancing the common interests of our allies and partners."
According to Al-Monitor, the American minister is scheduled to spend most of his visit in Jordan, a strong ally of the United States that has been suffering from economic problems in recent years, before leaving for Egypt and from there to Israel, where he will conclude his tour.
Prior to the visit, the US Department of Defense stated that the discussions would focus on the growing threat posed by Iran to the stability of the region, and on strengthening multilateral security cooperation with integrated air and missile defense systems.
The ministry's official website quoted a senior defense official as saying that the focus of discussion would be "the entire range of threats related to Iran...".
"These threats include Iran's arming, training and financing of violent groups acting as proxy, aggressive operations at sea, electronic threats, its ballistic missile program and drone attacks," the official added.
US officials said that during his visit to Israel, Austin will express his concerns about the escalation of violence in the West Bank that has alarmed Jordan and Arab leaders, and will discuss diplomatic efforts to ease tensions ahead of religious holidays for Muslims and Jews.
Al-Monitor reported a few days ago that the Austin tour aims to "remove the doubts of Middle East leaders about the Biden administration's commitment to the security needs of the region, after the increasing scrutiny of arms sales and the decline of the US military presence in Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf."