U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will make a multi-day visit to the Middle East.

This was announced by Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder.

“Secretary Austin will go on a planned multi-day visit to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility,” he was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.

He added that during the trip, the Pentagon chief intends to reaffirm Washington’s commitment to its commitments to the countries of the Middle East region.

Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov stated that the United States, together with the European Union, are trying to distract the international community from the crises occurring in the Middle East.