Six sources told CNN that military and intelligence officials have held quiet talks about shrinking the usual U.S. presence of people and facilities in the Middle East if the Trump administration brings the Iran conflict to an end.
Such a reduction would represent another change in how the American national security system handles a region that presidents from both parties have repeatedly tried to step away from. After the September 11, 2001, attacks, the United States sharply expanded a lasting network of military and intelligence sites used to fight wars and carry out strikes in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Iran, Yemen, and Libya.
