Manama: US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said yesterday while speaking about Middle East stability and US policy at the 12th security summit, that currently there are over 58,000 US troops in the Middle East, including 5,000 troops on the ground in Syria and Iraq. 
Local forces are 15 miles from Raqqa and the United States will deploy an additional 200 forces to ensure ISIS does not retake the area. Carter added that the efforts to limit ISIS access to its economical and logistical resources have been a success thus far. The US secretary of defense also added that the United States is developing an air defense system to counter Iran’s capabilities. He added that the department of defense is the best security partner to the Middle East and that it has interests that it can’t walk away from. “Mutual interest requires mutual commitments,” said Carter.  
Sheik Khalid bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa, minister of foreign affairs of Bahrain, said that we want Iran to be part of the regional security group. “We don’t want Iran to go in the wrong direction and take the region in the wrong direction,” added the foreign minister.
Speaking about absence of an Iranian delegation, Sheik Khalid Al-Khalifa said, “We always issue invitations to Iran to attend the IISS dialogue but they choose not to come.” He added that they are welcome to engage in dialogue, but trust is needed.
The minister added that fighting terrorists and militias are vital to achieve stability and that only representative governments should be allowed to take control. 
Sameh Shoukry, the Egyptian foreign minister, said that achieving orderly change must be a priority, and that unresponsive states have fallen to the aspirations of their people. The Egyptian foreign minister added that Saudi-Egyptian ties are clear from the Egyptian side and that there is a special nature to this relationship. He added that people should not take to heart what is being said by the media and their exaggeration.  
Vice President of Iraq Ayad Allawi revealed that since 2003, there has been a gap that has left his country’s civil infrastructure vulnerable, and that we are witnessing the same in Syria, which is now a victim to external manipulation. He added that the issue in Iraq is not about Sunni or Shia; it is about the disenfranchisement of key segments in the population.
Referring to Iran, Dr. Allawi said that he is opposed to war with neighboring countries, but there is a drastic need for security. “We want Iran to be part of the peace and security club of the region,” added the Iraqi Vice president.  
The Defense Minister for Singapore Dr. Ng Eng Hen spoke on combating extremism and stated that there is a clear threat of terrorism in South East Asia and the source of extremism must be tackled.
Dr. Ng also added that there are South East Asian fighters in the Middle East that want to create an ISIS-like caliphate when they return home. He said that combating extremism is partly ideological, and that behind every statistic are shattered lives and torn families. The defense minister also said that the war against ISIS must be fought on an ideological level with Muslim countries taking the lead.  
On her part the German Defense Minister Ursula von Der Leyen stressed that extremism is global in scope and regional in character. She also said that extremism has social and ideological dimensions that tell lies about Islam, and is poisoning societies, as well as stirring up Islamophobia in the West. She also stated that social media has been used as a weapon and that we must fight back with information to counter cyber propaganda.  
French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that like every nation gathered  here, France  has endured  the impact of extremism on its own soil, and that France answered Iraq’s call for assistance  in combating  ISIS in 2014 by sending 4,000 servicemen  to join the coalition forces.  
During yesterday’s final session regarding widening Middle Eastern security partnerships, retired General David Petraeus said the lack of inclusion in government in post-2003 Iraq sowed the seeds for today’s extremist groups. He added that the US military resources dwarf those of all other nations which is the reason the US has to lead the efforts to counter terrorism. 
Japanese State Minister of Foreign Affairs Kentaro Sonoura conveyed that he wants to promote a non-nuclear reintegration for Iran into the international community.  
Today will mark the final day for the security summit with closed delegate meetings pertaining to efforts for security sustainability in the region.