The State Department is preparing to send U.S. diplomats back to embassies in the Middle East that were evacuated before and during the war with Iran, suggesting that the Trump administration does not anticipate a return to all-out hostilities.
The return of foreign service officers and the scaling back of emergency measures taken at U.S. missions in the Middle East could begin this week, according to an internal State Department document obtained by The Times.
The changes were also described by three U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk with the press.
The restaffing is set to proceed even though talks between the United States and Iran have floundered, leaving the Trump administration to threaten new economic sanctions.
Embassies slated to restore higher levels of staffing include those in Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Iraq and Kuwait, the document says.
In a statement, the State Department said it “continuously reviews the security posture at our diplomatic missions around the world. Based on our latest assessment, we are adjusting our staffing posture at certain posts in the Middle East to ensure we can continue advancing U.S. foreign policy objectives while protecting the safety and security of our personnel.”
In late February, a day before the United States and Israel struck Iran, nonessential embassy workers in Jerusalem and their family members were given the option to leave Israel at government expense. Over the following weeks, the State Department issued orders to evacuate missions across the Middle East as Iran and its regional allies targeted U.S. diplomatic outposts in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and elsewhere in the region with explosive drones and rockets.
Diplomats assigned to some of those countries worked from their homes rather than at embassies as a precaution.
Current and former State Department officials said that redeploying staff signaled an easing of tensions, despite stalled talks between the United States and Iran over extending a 60-day cease-fire that expired last week.
“Returning personnel to missions that were partly evacuated suggests the administration believes the war is winding down,” said Dan Shapiro, who was the U.S. ambassador to Israel during the Obama administration and a Department of Defense official focused on the Middle East during the Biden administration.
The document says the first diplomats to return will be at the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon, though it would not reach full staffing under the plan. Ultimately, the documents say, staff will completely return to three embassies, in Israel, Jordan and Oman.
Posts in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Lebanon will initially cap staffing at 85 percent, and posts in Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain at 75 percent. In the six Gulf countries and Lebanon, the State Department will enforce restrictions on bringing family members, the document added.
“The limits on family members in the Gulf suggest that the government still believes there is an elevated risk,” said John R. Bass, the under secretary of state for management during the Biden administration. “They suggest that the threat environment is less than 30, 60, or 90 days ago, but more than before the start of the war.”
Some diplomats who evacuated because of the war had pressed for clarity on where they would be stationed, two of the U.S. officials said — particularly those with children who needed to make placement decisions ahead of the school year. It is unclear how much that pressure influenced the decision, if at all.
Former State Department officials cautioned that returning diplomats and some dependents to the region may signal a desire by the Trump administration to avoid renewed fighting, but it does not guarantee a lasting peace.
“Bringing back embassy staff does not tie their hands for taking action against Iran in the future,” said Robert Danin, a former deputy assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern affairs.
“They did it once,” he said, referring to embassy evacuations earlier this year. “They can do it again.”
