NEW YORK, August 12. /TASS/. The US Department of State is exploring the possibility of reducing the number of its staff serving at embassies in the Middle East, CNN news agency reported on Wednesday citing its unnamed sources.

"The State Department is asking US embassies in the Middle East to create plans to continue operating with a small number of staff on the ground," the agency states.

"The plans have not been finalized, the sources said, and it is unclear if they will be implemented at all of the embassies that are currently on reduced staffing," the US-based agency continued.

"Still, the developments underscore that the State Department does not expect to return to normal staffing in the region soon amid the looming threat of a full-scale return to war," according to CNN.

The United States and Israel began a war with Iran on February 28. In June, Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding providing for an immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including in Lebanon.

However, in the early morning hours of July 8, the US resumed large-scale strikes against Iran, accusing it of violating the terms of the agreements reached on the Strait of Hormuz.