The U.S. military is preparing for the possibility of joining Israel’s ongoing campaign against Iran, as President Trump considers direct military involvement aimed at crippling Iran’s nuclear capabilities for good.
On Tuesday, Trump issued a warning to the people of Tehran to evacuate, hinting at a potential strike less than a day after calling on Iran to accept the terms of a new nuclear deal. The shift in tone has signaled a serious escalation in U.S. posture.
A major decision now confronting the president is whether to authorize the use of GBU-57 “bunker buster” bombs on Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility a heavily fortified site deep inside a mountain. Military analysts say these bombs are likely the only weapons capable of destroying the site. Since Israel lacks both the bunker busters and the B-2 stealth bombers needed to deliver them, Israeli leaders have pushed for American involvement.
Former Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz told CNN that the U.S. has the power to carry out operations that Israel simply can’t. “I’m confident that if the United States decides to act, it will do so in line with its own interests not just ours,” he said. Another former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, added that Trump has a global responsibility to prevent Iran from ever acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Trump, who left the G7 summit early on Monday to meet with his national security team, has already approved a range of defensive military deployments. These include sending over 30 aerial refueling tankers to Europe, dispatching the USS Nimitz carrier strike group to the Middle East, and moving two Navy destroyers to the eastern Mediterranean to support Israel’s defense against missile attacks.
While the U.S. has so far stayed out of Israel’s offensive operations, these moves suggest a growing readiness to step in should the situation escalate further.
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