U.S. Weighs Military Reinforcements As Iran War Enters Possible New Phase

WASHINGTON, March 18 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump’s administration is considering deploying thousands of U.S. troops to strengthen its operation in the Middle East, a U.S. official and three people familiar with the matter said, as the U.S. military prepares for possible next steps in its campaign against Iran.

With the Iran war entering its third week, these deployments could help provide Trump with additional options as he focuses on expanding U.S. operations.

Sources said that these options include ensuring the safe passage of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, and that this task will be carried out primarily through air and naval forces. But four sources, including two US officials, said securing the Strait could also mean deploying US troops along Iran’s coastline.

Reuters granted the sources anonymity to talk about military planning.

The Trump administration is also discussing options for sending ground forces to Iran’s Kharg Island, the hub of 90 percent of Iran’s oil exports, three people familiar with the matter and three U.S. officials said. One of the officials said such an operation would be very risky. Iran has the ability to reach the island with missiles and drones.

The US launched an attack on military targets on the island on March 13, and Trump threatened to also hit the island’s critical oil infrastructure. But military experts say controlling the island may be seen as a better option than destroying it, given its vital role in Iran’s economy.

Given the low level of American public support for the Iran campaign and Trump’s own campaign promise to avoid involving the United States in new Middle East conflicts, any use of U.S. ground troops — even for a limited mission — could pose significant political risks for Trump.

Trump administration officials also discussed the possibility of deploying U.S. forces to secure Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile, one of the sources familiar with the matter said.

The sources did not believe the deployment of ground forces anywhere in Iran was imminent but declined to discuss details of U.S. operational planning. Experts say the task of securing Iran’s uranium stockpile will be extremely complex and risky, even for U.S. special operations forces.

A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “No decision has been made at this time to send ground troops, but President Trump is wisely retaining all options.

“The President remains focused on achieving all of the defined objectives of Operation Epic Fury: destroying Iran’s ballistic missile capability, destroying its navy, ensuring that terrorist proxies cannot destabilize the region, and ensuring that Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapon.”

The Pentagon declined to comment.

The discussions come as the US military continues to attack Iran’s navy, missile and drone stockpiles and defense industry.

The United States has carried out more than 7,800 strikes since the war began on Feb. 28, damaging or destroying more than 120 Iranian ships so far, according to a fact sheet released Wednesday by U.S. Central Command, which oversees nearly 50,000 U.S. troops in the Middle East.

Trump has said his goals go beyond weakening Iran’s military capabilities and could include securing safe passage through the Bosphorus and preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Land forces can help expand options for achieving these goals, but they carry significant risks. The U.S. military says that although there is no direct conflict in Iran, 13 U.S. soldiers have been killed and nearly 200 wounded in the war so far, but the vast majority of injuries are minor.

For years, Trump has chastised his predecessors for engaging in conflicts and promised to keep the United States out of foreign wars. But recently he refused to rule out the possibility of “the shoes dropping” in Iran.

A senior White House official told Reuters that Trump has several options to obtain Iran’s nuclear material but has not decided how to proceed. “Of course there are ways to get it,” the official said, adding: “He hasn’t made a decision yet.”

In written testimony to lawmakers on Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Iran’s nuclear enrichment program was destroyed by attacks in June and that the entrances to these underground facilities were “buried and cemented shut.”

Sources said discussions about U.S. reinforcements have gone beyond the arrival of an Amphibious Ready Group in the Middle East next week along with a Marine Expeditionary Unit that includes more than 2,000 sailors.

However, one of the sources noted that the US army lost a significant number of forces with the decision to send the USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier to Greece for maintenance after a fire broke out on the ship.

Trump also remained undecided on whether the United States should secure the Strait of Hormuz.

After initially saying the U.S. Navy could escort the ships, he also called on other countries to help open the main waterway. Trump, who has little interest from allies, considered leaving on Wednesday.

“I wonder what would happen if we ‘finished’ what was left of the Iranian State of Terror and let the countries that use it (we don’t) be responsible for the so-called ‘Strait’,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali, Erin Banco and Gram Slattery; Additional reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Don Durfee and Rosalba O’Brien)