Trump to hear military options for Iran as he works to inflict economic pain 🔥
President Donald Trump is expected to hear about updated military options for Iran from Pentagon officials on Thursday as he pressures Tehran into agreeing to a deal, a source familiar with the matter said.
Trump is routinely updated on military plans, and there was little to indicate his previous reluctance to restart the US bombing campaign was waning.
Still, the briefing was a sign that Trump is keeping his options open as negotiations to end the war grind slowly.
The briefing, first reported by Axios, was expected to include Adm. Brad Cooper, the commander of US Central Command, and Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, along with other senior military officials.
Trump’s current strategy is designed to inflict as much economic pain as possible on Iran in the hopes the country will cave to his demands on curbing its nuclear program.
He has told his top advisers in recent days he wants the US naval blockade of Iranian ports to continue, sources familiar with the talks said, and his team has begun laying the groundwork for such an extension, including a longer-term closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“The blockade is genius,” the president told reporters Wednesday when asked how long it would continue. “Now, they have to cry uncle, that’s all they have to do. Just say, ‘We give up,’” he added.
While the Pentagon has continued making preparations should the president decide to resume his bombing campaign, Trump has long indicated internally that he would prefer making a deal with the Iranians and avoid further kinetic attacks, the sources familiar with the matter said.
The ceasefire currently in place is open-ended, and Trump has said he doesn’t feel time pressure to arrive at a deal.
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