Jesse Ramsdell
Joint US and Israeli military strikes in Iran Saturday morning marked the start of a conflict with no clear offramp or end in sight. At the onset of the attack, Trump released a video on Truth Social declaring the strikes were to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon. He then called on Iranian citizens to “take over” the government, indicating he is instead seeking regime change. Statements from President Trump and Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, over the last few days have mentioned concerns with Iran’s ballistic missile program with President Trump claiming Iran was rapidly developing missiles that could hit the US, although this claim has not been verified. With varying statements clouding the reasoning behind US intervention and broader US ambitions in Iran, for the US to obtain any semblance of success it must clarify its strategic goals, communicate those goals to the American and Iranian people, and commit to seeing them through. The US has pulled the trigger on war and there will be no easy path to deescalation.
In recent days, US rhetoric on preemptive action against Iran has included everything from Iran’s ballistic missile program and nuclear program to regime change. Now is not the time for strategic ambiguity. These murky statements will make it nearly impossible for the US to achieve its goals in Iran. Previously, when the US has made such expansive claims, most glaringly with Iraq in 2003, it has not turned out well. If the US truly wants regime change, as is becoming clearer with each hour, the President needs to make this case to the American and Iranian people with a defined strategy and exit plan in place. The US cannot afford to pull back or fail in its promises to the Iranian people. Doing so will undermine US credibility.
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