Trump's Iran War Could Drag On For Another Six Months, Former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Warns

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Former US defence secretary Leon Panetta has warned that President Donald Trump's war with Iran could continue for another six months, raising fears that the conflict could turn into another prolonged US military engagement in the Middle East.

Panetta said the US and Iran were caught in a“terrible stalemate”, with few options available to bring the conflict to an end.

“I think the likelihood is this war is going to continue for another six months without being resolved,” Panetta told The Guardian.

Panetta, who also served as CIA director under former President Barack Obama, warned that the conflict risked becoming another“forever war in the Middle East” and could eventually resemble the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Panetta: Trump is 'boxed in'

According to the news outlet, Panetta believes Trump is facing the same dilemma he identified earlier this year: either escalate the conflict or find a way to withdraw while claiming victory.

“He's boxed himself in,” Panetta said, arguing that the president has limited options for ending the war without appearing to have failed.

Panetta outlined three possible paths for Trump.

The first would be to withdraw and acknowledge that the war had failed - an outcome Panetta said he finds difficult to imagine Trump accepting.

The second would be to allow the current stalemate to continue, with periodic attacks from both sides and neither Washington nor Tehran willing to negotiate or surrender.

That, Panetta warned, could result in exactly what the parties had sought to avoid - another long-running Middle East war.

The third option would be for the US to take control of the Strait of Hormuz, which Panetta described as Iran's most important leverage point because of its ability to disrupt global trade.

'Open up the Strait of Hormuz'

Panetta said the war could only become“winnable” for the US if Washington dramatically changed its approach and made reopening the Strait of Hormuz its primary objective.

“It's only winnable if there is a dramatic change in the attitude of the United States that makes clear that the objective, the primary objective by the United States at this point in time, is to reopen the strait of Hormuz,” he told the media outlet.

The former defence secretary argued that Iran's ability to close or disrupt the strategic waterway gives Tehran significant leverage over the US and the global economy.

“So the president either steps up and does what's necessary to open up the strait of Hormuz, or, as I said, he just continues to play this game of pretending that somehow he's winning a stalemate when the fact is he's not,” Panetta said.

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Panetta also criticised Trump over repeated claims that a deal to end the war was imminent and that the Strait of Hormuz was open.

He argued that these statements had damaged the President's credibility and weakened the impact of future threats.

“So the real question is, is he going to make a decision to actually deliver?” Panetta said, according to The Guardian.

“For a lot of reasons, right now, he's caught in the worst of every world because not only does he not have credibility, but any threats he makes are totally ignored.”

Panetta said he believed many Americans had also lost confidence in Trump's ability to manage the conflict, pointing to polling that he said showed growing opposition to the war.

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Panetta's comments came days after US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll resigned amid reports of tensions with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth over a series of dismissals at the Pentagon.

Panetta said US troops were going to war while facing“tremendous turmoil” at the Pentagon and within the military command structure.

“It creates a sense that there's nobody in charge,” Panetta said.

He warned that US adversaries, including China, Russia, North Korea and terrorist groups, could interpret the turmoil as a sign of American weakness.

“My biggest concern right now is we live in a very dangerous world, with the primary threats coming from China, from Russia, from North Korea, and from terrorism, and yes, from Iran as well,” he said.

Panetta added that the situation risked sending a“message of weakness” to US adversaries.

Warning over USS Abraham Lincoln deployment

Panetta also raised concerns about the treatment of US military personnel involved in the Iran conflict.

He pointed to the lengthy deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln, which arrived in Thailand after spending more than 260 days deployed in support of US operations against Iran without a port visit.

Reports have raised concerns about deteriorating living conditions and mental health among personnel aboard the carrier.

Panetta said the Pentagon needed to learn from the deployment and ensure that troops were not left in war zones indefinitely.

“Bottom line is, you do not deploy people endlessly into a war zone without making some kind of plans for rotation,” he said.

Panetta argued that the problems extend beyond the battlefield, saying there was growing concern over whether the US military was adequately supporting troops risking their lives.

“So it's not just that the war is going badly – I think there's also kind of a lack of trust in our military as to whether or not they are properly supporting our men and women who are putting their lives on the line,” he said.

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