Washington, Jan 30 (.) Weighing the option of a military strike against Iran in recent days, US President Donald Trump is said to have received from the Pentagon an expanded list of possible military actions against key state installations.
Part of these attack options include carrying out strikes at the Islamic Republic’s nuclear research centres and missile production facilities, as well as carrying out covert operations within the country, geared towards further weakening the country’s leadership.
“President Trump has been presented in recent days with an expanded list of possible military options for Iran that go beyond those he had previously considered,” the New York Times reported, citing anonymous US officials.
While not fully clear what these strike options are, they do not rule out the possibility of a direct US invasion, with American forces attacking outlined facilities with boots on ground, despite Trump’s apprehension towards sending US forces anywhere for direct on-ground action.
As per NYT sources, the discussions are taking place in a different context, as protests in the Islamic Republic “have been suppressed, at least for now.”
While doing some military posturing in and around Iran, Trump has largely been focused on bashing Iran verbally, demanding that Tehran take additional steps to curtail its nuclear program, cease support for Iranian proxy groups that Washington perceives as a threat, and stop committing violence against protesters.
This comes as the US President and his closest advisors are discussing whether or not to follow up on their previous threats to use force against Iran, while taking the geopolitical complexities of attacking Iran into consideration, with senior White House officials noting that any direct attack against Tehran would need to be a carefully calibrated military exercise.
“As commander in chief of the world’s most powerful military, President Trump has many options on Iran. The President has made clear that he hopes no action will be necessary, but the Iranian regime must make a deal before it is too late,” said White House spokesperson Anna Kelly.
While Trump has not yet authorised military action or even made a final choice among the proposed options. The White House maintains that the president remains open to a diplomatic solution, and that the military threat is largely aimed at pushing Tehran toward negotiations; its role being more of a deterrent than anything else.
While parallels to Venezuela have been noted, it has also been highlighted by officials in Washington that Tehran is a significantly more dangerous target, as the country has no internal support from high level officials unlike Caracas, the geography being significantly different, and Iran possessing a vast, multi-layered arsenal of arms, which are more than potent despite being heavily outdated.
. . PRS