United States expected to send thousands of soldiers to West Asia

The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, did not specify ​where in the ⁠Middle East the troops would go and when they would arrive in the region. The soldiers are stationed at Fort Bragg, ⁠North ‌Carolina.

Washington: The Pentagon is expected to send thousands of soldiers from the army's elite 82nd Airborne ⁠Division to West Asia, two people ⁠familiar with the matter told Reuters ‌on Tuesday, adding ​to the massive military buildup even as the Trump administration seeks talks with Iran.

The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, did not specify ​where in West Asia the troops would go and when they would arrive in the region. The soldiers are stationed at Fort Bragg, ⁠North ‌Carolina.

The US military referred questions to the White House, which did not ‌immediately respond to a request for comment.

No decision ⁠had been made to send troops into Iran itself, one of the ‌sources told Reuters, but they ‌will build up capacity for potential future ‌operations in the region.

The soldiers' ‌deployment would be in addition to the deployment last week of thousands of Marines and sailors aboard the USS ⁠Boxer, ⁠an amphibious assault ship, along with its Marine Expeditionary Unit and accompanying warships.

The expected deployments come just a day after President Donald Trump postponed threats to bomb Iranian power plants, saying there had been "productive" talks ​with Iran.

But after Trump's Truth Social comment ​on Monday, Iran denied ​that any talks had been held.