Trump says US is not putting troops in Middle East region

He assures reporters no additional troops for Iran conflict

US President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested he was not looking at deploying soldiers to the Middle East with the Iran war heading toward a fourth week.

"I'm not putting troops anywhere," Trump said in response to a reporter who asked whether he was planning to send more service members to the region. "If I were, I certainly wouldn't tell you. But I'm not putting troops. We will do whatever is necessary."

Trump spoke at the White House during an Oval Office meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that the Trump administration is considering deploying thousands of US troops to reinforce the Iran operation, citing a US official and three people familiar with the matter.

Thirteen US troops have been killed since Iran launched strikes against US military bases following the start of the conflict on Feb 28.