US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has landed in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, on the initial stop of a four-day European journey, where he will also go to Greece and Portugal.
According to a statement from the Department of State, "Economic and security cooperation" is the primary focus of his discussions with Icelandic officials on Monday.
Before leaving, he informed reporters that he would not directly connect the US choice to withdraw its B-1 bombers from Britain's Fairford airbase to the incident from last week.
“I wouldn’t directly link that to the action taken,” Rubio informed reporters, noting that “the Department of War is always shifting resources to where they are needed.”
Rubio expressed assurance in the safety of every US base and commended the collaboration of officials in the United Kingdom.
Five British men were detained close to the base on suspicion of planning “terrorist acts” and were subsequently released on bail. A sixth individual, a dual citizen of the UK and Iran apprehended separately in London, has been granted bail.
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B-1 bombers, previously deployed for attacks on Iran, returned to the US.
President Donald Trump subsequently stated that “certain threats” led the US to remove its bombers from the UK.
“Some threats existed, and instead of provoking the enemy, we will seize the enemy and defeat the enemy.” But what reason do we have to leave them there? “We shifted them slightly, not by much,” Trump informed reporters at the White House earlier on Monday while leaving for an election event in Nebraska.
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A military source from NATO stated: “It is still thought that Iran presents a significant danger to US interests in the UK.”
Iran's Revolutionary Guard had stated that the Fairford base was a valid target, but Tehran refuted any connection to the incident from last week.
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Rubio is visiting Greece to head the US delegation for the sixth US-Greece Strategic Dialogue, emphasizing defense collaboration and regional as well as energy security. He is set to conclude his tour in the Portuguese capital Lisbon, where he will talk about defence, economic, and technological collaboration.