US: Blinken and Austin to visit Gulf to address post-war stresses

Secretary of state and defence secretary to travel separately, meet with key US allies in Arabian Gulf and Europe.

Top US national security officials will see how the failed war in Afghanistan may be reshaping the United States’ relationships in the Middle East as they meet with key allies in the Arabian Gulf and Europe this week. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are travelling to the Gulf separately, leaving on Sunday. They will talk with leaders who are central to US efforts to prevent a resurgence of threats from armed groups in Afghanistan, some of whom were partners in the 20-year fight against the Taliban. Together, the Austin and Blinken trips are meant to reassure Gulf allies that President Joe Biden’s decision to end the US war in Afghanistan in order to focus more on other security challenges like China and Russia does not foretell an abandonment of US partners in the Middle East.