CNN
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President Donald Trump has weighed whether to take part in Israel’s strikes against Iran, including targeting nuclear facilities underground using bombs that destroy bunkers – said it is ongoing among his top officials on how the US can hit those targets without getting caught up in a full-scale war.
For Trump, trying to avoid extending the conflict that began last Thursday has become the best order. He has accepted the argument from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that only the US could end Iran’s nuclear ambitions decisively, but he is deeply wary of being stuck on the kind of foreign conflict he has vowed to avoid, sources said.
Over the weekend, some US allies received words that they planned to wait for what the Israelis had accomplished in the first week of an operation against Iran’s nuclear program before the Trump administration decided to engage in US military assets, two European diplomats said.
A day before that deadline, Trump said he had not made a final decision on how to proceed, and in conversations with allies on Wednesday, executive officials certainly weren’t leaning in a one-sided direction, the diplomat said. Trump has reviewed Iran’s attack plan, but is confirming whether Tehran will retreat from the nuclear program.
“I like to make the final decision a second before,” Trump said in his oval office. “In war, things change with war, especially. You can move from one extreme to another.”
As the president contemplated his options, he said he didn’t think that the US strike would necessarily mean a complete US intervention in foreign wars, a source familiar with the matter said. And those close to Trump argue that a critical strike is different from broader actions that could extend the conflict.
“The US may drop several Moabs on Fordor and destroy the last nuclear assets before leaving,” Trump’s Israeli ambassador David Friedman wrote on social media during his first term. Moab refers to a massive weapon explosion bomb called “Mother of All Bombs.”
“The airspace is already clear,” Friedman continued. “How is it dragging you into something?”
As Trump keeps his options open, the administration continues to hear from allies opposed to offensive US involvement. The scope of the reason could include Iran trying to block the Strait of Hormuz, potentially overturning oil flows, and Iran could choose to compete for nuclear weapons after the US strike, two sources familiar with the debate said. Iran vowed to retaliate if US forces join Israel in the attack.
“If Americans decide to engage militarily, we have no choice but to retaliate where we find the goals we need to take action,” Iran’s Deputy Minister Majid Takt Ravanch said in an interview with CNN’s Christian Amanpur. “It’s clear and simple, because we act in self-defense.”
One model of actions that Trump’s allies have personally discussed in recent weeks is his 2020 decision to assassinate top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani near Baghdad International Airport using an MQ-9 Reaper drone. The strike was still a serious escalation that caused retaliation from Iran, but it did not cause an all-out war.
Trump administration officials discussed the Soleimani strike as a counter to a theory that argued that US strikes could lead to “out-of-control escalation,” a source familiar with the conversation said.
For now, Trump has publicly ruled out the killing of Iran’s top leader.
Trump’s finest national security authorities have consciously strived to try and get to the same page that presents options for the president.
“My job, our job, our chair, I’m always about making sure that we, as president, have options, and letting them know what those options are and what those options are.”
Trump’s CIA director, John Ratcliffe, was among those Trump has relied on recently, as the president considered the next step ahead of the Israeli strike.
Letcliffe attended Camp David Retreat on June 8, just before Israel’s first attack, and explained to Trump about the latest information related to Iran’s nuclear program and Israel’s next move, according to a source familiar with the discussion.
The retreat at Camp David was not originally intended as an intelligence-focused meeting, as evident in the fact that Ratcliffe and Trump’s National Intelligence Director were not initially invited. Ratcliffe traveled last minute, officials said, explaining to the president about the rapidly evolving situation.
Another important voice in Trump’s ears is US Central Commander General Michael Kurira. According to two sources familiar with the issue, in recent weeks, some US military leaders, including Kurilla, have been asking for more resources to advocate and support Israel as they continue to trade fires with Iran.
“(Kurilla) would want to prepare for the most challenging coincidence,” said one source familiar with the issue, referring to his push to place US assets in the Middle East that support Israel.
A stubborn Israeli supporter, Kurila has been pushing for months to move more and more military assets into the Middle East among Yemeni Hooti rebels, Iranian commissioners between Israel and Iran, in preparation for the conflict with the possibility of Hegus and Trump’s transfer.
Whether Trump can hit Iran is a matter of debate to avoid being drawn into the quagmire. Some Iranian experts have warned that the confrontations drawn up could continue the period of Trump’s presidency, and could hit America’s livelihoods and resources at Israel’s request.
“The US attacks will lead to full-scale Iranian attacks on US bases in the region and a full-scale war between the US and Iran,” Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute in Washington, DC, told CNN.
Tehran may not be able to sustain a long battle with the US, but that’s not an easy war for Washington, he said.
Otherwise, many solid supporters question whether it is possible to launch a strike in Iran without being caught up in intergenerational conflict.
“First and foremost, this is not our war. This is the war in Iran. The President of the United States is the commander of our military. He listens to all of us who work in the national security lane.”
“I think he did a fantastic job of threading on a very difficult needle,” Riche said a day before his meeting with the president.
Another Senate Republican who spoke with Trump this week, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, said that if the US acts aggressively against Iran, it would be “not comfortable.”
“I don’t want us to fight wars. I don’t want another Middle East war… I’m a bit worried about our sudden military accumulation in the region,” Holy said the day after a conversation with Trump.
The risk of retaliation from Iran is strong enough that even before Trump made the decision, the US military began accidental preparations explaining possible Iran’s retaliation against the US military if Trump advances on a strike, according to a well-known source of the plan.
After frequent conversations with Netanyahu, who needs US support to complete the ultimate goal of Israeli leaders wiping out Iran’s nuclear capabilities, the president on Wednesday acknowledged that US involvement will help speed up the process of Israel’s success.
“We are the only ones who have the ability to do it, but that doesn’t mean we’re trying to do it at all,” Trump said.
However, he also confirmed his pledge to avoid a “long war.”
“I just want one thing. Iran cannot have nuclear weapons,” he said. “That’s it. It’s not long-term in the short term. And I’ve been saying that for 20 years.”
CNN’s Alejandra Jaramillo contributed to this report.