U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will host his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon on Oct. 9 “to discuss security developments in the Middle East,” the Pentagon said.
The visit comes as Israel pledges to retaliate against Iran for the missile attack Tehran launched against its territory on Tuesday, which included more than 180 ballistic missiles and was largely repelled by Israeli anti-aircraft systems and interceptions involving the US military.
The two ministers discussed Iran’s destabilizing actions in the Middle East, as well as the current situation in Lebanon and the Middle East.
The US Secretary of Defense assured of US support, but also of Israel’s right to self-defense.
At the same time, the two ministers reiterated their joint commitment to exercising deterrence against Iran and its supporters in the Middle East region to prevent them from taking advantage of the situation, according to the same US Pentagon statement.
