The Pentagon is extending the presence of American troops in the Middle East until 2027, giving Donald Trump the flexibility he needs to evaluate his next moves on Iran.
The president—according to rumors reported by the Wall Street Journal—is tempted to declare the war over and has discussed it with his closest advisers, but the extension of his 50,000 troops' presence in the Gulf leaves him free to exert pressure, including on Tehran. The commander-in-chief believes the economic stranglehold on the ayatollahs will ultimately bring down the regime, forcing it to dismantle its nuclear program.
So far, however, Iran has shown no signs of relenting, continuing its raids on American bases in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. This has fueled tensions in the Gulf, where 13 Yemeni soldiers were killed in clashes with the Houthis, not far from the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Gulf waters were the focus of the meeting between Abu Dhabi's security adviser and Steve Witkoff, Trump's envoy. Their face-to-face meeting in Sardinia a few days ago, Axios reports, focused on the Strait of Hormuz, which the commander-in-chief wants opened at all costs to try to slow skyrocketing oil prices. Trump is aware that a current escalation of the conflict would boost oil prices, jeopardizing the Republicans' chances in the midterm elections. But after the November vote, he hasn't ruled anything out: various options have already been presented to him in recent weeks, including a massive resumption of attacks.
Precisely with this in mind, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has opted to extend the deployment of American forces so that they are ready to respond to any scenario, be it war or peacekeeping. Hegseth's decision has sparked considerable controversy at a time when he is in the eye of the storm for his barrage of dismissals and a growing Republican faction is calling for his ouster. On the one hand, there are the huge costs of maintaining the equipment and deployed soldiers. On the other, there is the excessive stress the military is subjected to during such a long mission.
