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Pompeo heads to Mideast to stress 'US not going anywhere'

Despite President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw troops from Syria, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will stress US commitment to the region and an anti-Iran theme on trip to Jordan, Egypt and Gulf states.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pauses during a news conference at the State Department in Washington, U.S., November 20, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1247769330

WASHINGTON — Despite President Donald Trump’s decision to pull US forces from Syria, the United States is not leaving the region, and Iran is the top regional menace, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will stress when he travels to Jordan, Egypt and all six of the Gulf Cooperation Council states next week, State Department officials said today.

“The United States is not leaving the Middle East,” a senior State Department official, speaking not for attribution, told journalists on a State Department conference call today. “ p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Calibri; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} Despite reports to the contrary and false narratives surrounding the Syria decision, we are not going anywhere.”

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