US limits non-essential staff at embassy in Iraq after rising tensions with Iran

The United States is reducing the number of non-essential staff in the Middle East, the State Department announced Wednesday evening. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad is preparing for an emergency evacuation due to heightened security risks in the region.

The United States is also authorizing the departure of non-essential personnel and their family members from Bahrain and Kuwait, giving them the option to choose whether they want to leave.

An Iraqi Foreign Ministry official confirmed the "limited departure" of US Embassy staff, saying the decision was based on "potential security concerns related to regional tensions."

Tensions in the region are rising as nuclear talks between the United States and Iran appear to have stalled, and as the 18-month war in Gaza has raised fears of a wider regional war.

The talks aim to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the economic sanctions the US has imposed on Iran, which insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

Iran has said the next round of talks with the US will be held on June 15 in Oman. Iran is preparing a counterproposal after rejecting a US proposal for a deal that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described as "100 percent against national interests."

US special envoy Steve Witkoff will meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Muscat to discuss Iran's response, according to US media reports citing a US official.

The United States has a military presence in Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

A US official said there has been no change in the status of al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar - the largest US military base in the Middle East - and that no orders have been issued to evacuate employees or family members of the US Embassy in Qatar, Reuters reported.

President Donald Trump said people are "leaving" the "dangerous" Middle East, when asked about news that non-essential personnel have been given the opportunity to leave.

"We'll see what happens," Trump said.

"They can't have nuclear weapons," Trump stressed, referring to Iran and the nuclear talks.

In an interview published on June 11, Trump said his confidence that Iran would accept a deal on its nuclear program was much lower than it was a few months ago.

Speaking on a New York Post podcast published on June 11, Trump said he "don't know" whether he will be able to convince Tehran to stop its nuclear activities.

"I don't know. I used to think so, but now I'm less and less sure about it," the US president said.

"They seem to be delaying, and I think it's unfortunate. I'm less sure now than I was a few months ago. Something has happened to them," he said in the interview recorded on June 9.

Trump has not ruled out military action against Iran's nuclear facilities if diplomacy fails, while US intelligence suggests that Israel is preparing to attack Iran if talks fail.

Iran's Defense Minister, Aziz Nasirzadeh, said on June 11 that if nuclear talks fail and a conflict breaks out with Washington, Tehran will retaliate by striking American bases in the region.

Iran's mission to the UN posted a statement on the X platform saying that threats of force "will not change the reality: Iran does not seek nuclear weapons and US militarism only fuels instability."/ REL