Why is the U.S. attacking Iran?
President Trump has not given a single, clear purpose for the war.
After initially calling for “regime change,” Trump administration officials are mostly downplaying that goal and offering others. On March 2, Pete Hegseth outlined three goals: the destruction of Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal, the destruction of its navy, and eliminating its ability to ever develop a nuclear weapon.
Later that day, Trump identified four goals: Hegseth’s three, plus eliminating Iran’s ability to “fund, arm, and direct” regional allies. Marco Rubio, before he briefed Congress on March 2, added the possibility of a U.S. role in shaping a new regime in Iran, saying, “I mean, we might. We’ll see how circumstances play out.”
So while it is very difficult to know their actual reasons, some things can be determined.
First, the U.S. and Israel share a goal of degrading Tehran’s military capabilities. This means reducing Iran’s ballistic missile and drone arsenals, destroying Iran’s non-military nuclear program to prevent an imagined, future nuclear weapon, and otherwise eliminating Iran’s power as an influential military and political player in the Middle East.
Second, this war serves as both a demonstration and a consolidation of Israeli supremacy in the Middle East …read more
Source:: Institute for Policy Studies