is drawing down non-essential personnel from several diplomatic and military sites across the Middle East, citing growing regional instability. The State Department on Wednesday ordered the departure of all nonessential staff from the US Embassy in Baghdad, noting ongoing security concerns and a commitment to protecting American lives. While the embassy was already operating with limited personnel, the move marks a further scale-down.

Additionally, nonessential staff and family members in Bahrain and Kuwait have been authorized to leave at government expense, the department confirmed.

US Central Command said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approved the voluntary departure of military dependents across the region as a precautionary step. "CENTCOM is monitoring the developing tension in the Middle East," the statement said.

President Donald Trump, speaking at the Kennedy Center on Wednesday, acknowledged the drawdown: “They are being moved out, because it could be a dangerous place, and we’ll see what happens.”

The US and Iran appear to be at a diplomatic impasse over Iran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program. A sixth round of talks, initially set for this weekend in Oman, is now in doubt, according to two American officials. Trump, speaking on the Pod Force One podcast, said he was "getting more and more less confident" about a breakthrough with Iran. “They seem to be delaying... Something happened to them.” Iran, for its part, pushed back on the mounting pressure. Its UN mission stated, “Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon, and US militarism only fuels instability.” Defense Minister Gen Aziz Nasirzadeh warned that Iran is fully prepared to respond to any military conflict.

“If conflict is imposed, the opponent’s casualties will certainly be more than ours... all [US] bases in host countries are within our reach,” he said.

In a parallel move, the United Kingdom issued a maritime alert, warning ships in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and Strait of Hormuz about the risk of military escalation. The UK Maritime Trade Operations center urged vessels to exercise caution.

Meanwhile, a possible censure of Iran is on the agenda at the International Atomic Energy Agency, which could pave the way for the reimposition of UN sanctions under the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal — from which Trump withdrew during his first term.

General Erik Kurilla, head of US Central Command, was scheduled to testify before the Senate on Thursday, but the hearing has been postponed without explanation.

Iraqi officials, meanwhile, downplayed the significance of the US Embassy drawdown in Baghdad, calling it part of a broader US regional reassessment.

“There are no security indicators that warrant evacuation,” Iraq’s state-run news agency quoted an unnamed official as saying.