AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Leon Panetta, former US Secretary of War and former Director of the CIA, said the US war against Iran could continue for at least another six months and become "another endless failed war in the Middle East," a war that, according to him, could share the fate of America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan if the current situation persists.
In an interview with The Guardian, Panetta described the current situation between the United States and Iran as a "terrible deadlock" and said there are very few options to end the war. He added, "I think this war will probably continue for another six months without resolution." The former CIA director also warned that the conflict could become "another failed war" in the Middle East.
The former US Secretary of Defense also cited the chaotic situation at the Pentagon and the US military command structure as factors weakening Washington. Referring to the sudden resignation of Dan Driscoll, the US Secretary of the Army, and reported tensions at the Department of Defense, he said American troops are being deployed to war amid "massive disarray at the Pentagon and the command structure," a situation that, according to him, creates the impression that "no one is in charge."
Panetta emphasized that this situation sends a message of American weakness to the country's rivals. He said, "They are now looking at the United States and seeing weakness in our ability to actually carry out our military capability to defend the country." He added, "My biggest concern right now is that we are living in a very dangerous world," and warned that America should not send "a message of weakness" against its main rivals, including China, Russia, North Korea, terrorism, and Iran.
Panetta went on to say that Donald Trump has trapped himself "in the worst possible situation" regarding the Iran war, and his credibility has also been damaged because, according to him, the US President has repeatedly and mistakenly spoken of an imminent agreement to end the war and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Panetta said Trump is "trapped in the worst of both worlds," adding, "Not only does he lack credibility, but any threat he makes is completely ignored."
According to Panetta, Trump now has three options: first, ending the war and accepting that it has failed; second, continuing the current deadlock with mutual and periodic attacks, without negotiation or surrender from either side; and third, attempting to take control of the Strait of Hormuz and eliminating what Panetta calls "Iran's most dangerous leverage." He said if the second option continues, the result will be exactly what everyone feared: "another long war in the Middle East."
Panetta also, referring to growing doubts about Trump's ability to manage the war, said many Americans have "lost confidence" in the US President's ability to handle this war. He also criticized the way American forces are being deployed, and referring to the long-term deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in support of US operations against Iran, said, "You don't deploy forces indefinitely in a war zone without any plan for rotation." Panetta concluded by warning that the problem is not only that "the war is going badly," but that "a kind of distrust in our military" has also developed, a distrust about whether American troops who are risking their lives are being properly supported.
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