1、 https:/crsreports.congress.gov January 9, 2020The 2019-2020 Iran Crisis and U.S. Military Deployments The January 2, 2020, U.S. drone strike against Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani, the subsequent Iranian counter-strike on bases hosting U.S. personnel in Iraq, and recent deployments of U.S. m
2、ilitary forces to the Middle East have prompted widespread concerns about whether the United States is preparing to engage in another major military campaign in the region. Yet at present, the flow of additional forces into the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility (AOR) suggests tha
3、t the Department of Defense (DOD) is posturing itself in the region defensively, with the ability to respond to aggression, if necessary. The design of this posture may be altered should there be changes to security or political conditions on the ground, or political objectives for the region. Figur
4、e 1. The CENTCOM AOR Created by CRS. Presence data from CENTCOM.mil (2016); DOD Base Structure Report (2015); several federal contracting announcements (https:/, 2015); MilitaryB (2016); and CRS analysis. Map boundaries from data from Dept. of State (2015); Esri (2014). Names and boundary representa