The conflict between the U.S. And Israel with Iran began on Saturday, with several U.S. Officials and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holding press conferences, giving interviews, and answering questions only on Monday. This comes as tensions in the Middle East continue to rise, prompting global concern over potential escalation. Here’s what they said about the length of the war, its objectives, and why it began now.
What happens next and how long will the war last?
On Monday, Donald Trump told journalists that the war in Iran could last four to five weeks.
He stated that the U.S. Initially planned for four weeks to destroy Iran’s military leadership, but “we are ahead of schedule,” Trump said.
He also added that the U.S. Is prepared to fight longer if necessary.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio declined to make any predictions about the possible duration of the war, stating:
“We have objectives. We will do it for as long as it takes to achieve those objectives.”
“I won’t disclose the details of our tactical efforts, but the heavier blows that the American army has not yet delivered. The next phase against Iran will be even tougher than it is now,” Rubio added.
Trump echoed this sentiment: “We haven’t even started seriously attacking yet. The big wave hasn’t hit yet. The big wave will be hitting soon.”
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegset promised that the war in Iran would not be “endless,” but, like Rubio, he refused to make any predictions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used the same phrasing in an interview with “Fox News.” “It won’t be an endless war,” he said.
Will there be a ground operation?
Currently, U.S. And Israeli action is limited to airstrikes, but the key question is the possible presence of ground forces in Iran in the future.
Currently, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegset stressed that there isn’t one. “But we will not engage in any discussions about what we will or will not do in the future,” he said.
Trump told the “Fresh York Post” that he cannot promise that ground troops will not be involved, but the U.S. Believes that the goals of the military campaign can be achieved without a ground operation, Rubio said.
What is the goal of the war?
In his Saturday address, Trump identified the destruction of Iran’s nuclear program as the primary goal. “It’s a exceptionally simple message. They will never have nuclear weapons,” he said.
Trump also mentioned regime change: he called on the IRGC to lay down its arms and ordinary Iranians to “overthrow the government when we’re done.”
Officials in the Trump administration are speaking more cautiously about regime change.
The Islamic power in Iran still holds, and the coming days will present how strong it is.
“We hope that the Iranian people will be able to overthrow the government and create a new future for the country. We would be very happy about that,” Rubio said.
However, he added that this is not the main goal of the war. “The purpose of the operation is to destroy their missile and naval capabilities,” the U.S. Secretary of State said.
Pete Hegset reiterated this view: he said this is not a war for regime change.
Asserting that the war in Iran has clear objectives, Washington is trying to emphasize the differences with the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, in which American troops were involved.
“Donald Trump will absolutely not allow the U.S. To get involved in a multi-year conflict with no visible end and no clear objectives,” U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said in an interview with “Fox News.”
Why now?
Prior to the strikes against Iran, three rounds of talks brokered by Oman took place in Geneva, but Trump did not even mention these talks in his Saturday address.
Special U.S. Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, one of the main negotiators in Geneva, told “Fox News” that at the end of the second round it became clear that an agreement could not be reached.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Israel was planning an attack in any case and that Americans would have suffered great losses if they had not joined.
“First, it was perfectly clear that if Iran was attacked by someone (the U.S., Israel, or someone else), they would respond and that retaliation would be directed at the U.S.,” he said. “We knew that Israel would act, we knew that this would be followed by an attack on American forces, and we knew that if we did not launch a preemptive strike, we would suffer greater losses.”
Netanyahu also called the claim that Israel had dragged the U.S. Into the war absurd. “Trump doesn’t need to be dragged anywhere. He’s doing what he thinks is right, and that’s right,” the Israeli Prime Minister said.
