Is Trump ending Iran war? 'Operation Fury' naming ends, Hegseth extends troop plan to 2027 as prez appears tired ahead of midterms
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Is Trump ending Iran war? 'Operation Fury' naming ends, Hegseth extends troop plan to 2027 as prez appears tired ahead of midterms")
A file image of Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth. Are they diverging on what to do with Iran war? Photograph: (Others)
A report hinted that Trump is weighing to end the Iran war. A military letter has asked for not using the term ‘Operation Epic Fury’ for US operations in the Gulf. But US troop deployments are being extended into 2027. Midterm concerns, economic pressure, or mixed signals?
It is midterm election season in the US, and President Donald Trump has't got much to show for victory in Iran war. Reports, including in Wall Street Journal, suggest that he is weighing whether to declare the Iran war over. Trump administration has meanwhile officially asked for ending the usage of the term ‘Operation Epic Fury’, which started the war on February 28. Trump's Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is planning US troops extension in the Middle East into 2027, and the Pentagon appears to be readying for a prolonged US military presence in the Gulf. Is there a gap between the thinking of the president and Hegseth on the course of the war?
Operation Fury naming officially ends
The Pentagon has said months ago that Operation Epic Fury officially ended on May 5. An August 7 Air Force email obtained by CBS News instructed military leaders to stop using the name in Iran operations, which still continued with occasional strikes from the US Central Command targeting Iranian assets. The letter told the services to use the term "overseas operations in the US Central Command Area of Responsibility." This guidance from Hegseth's public affairs office was disseminated across the Defence Department, according to officials cited by CBS News.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said on May 5 itself that Operation Epic Fury is over.
"The president notified Congress…we're done with that stage of it. We're now on to this Project Freedom," he had said at the time.
Hegseth separately described Project Freedom as a defensive maritime mission protecting commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
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What's in a name? The broader conflict has not ended and Pentagon is preparing for longer war
Whatever name the US gives it, the reality is that the conflict is far from over. Trump notified Congress on July 7 that "military action" against Iran had restarted after talks collapsed and the April ceasefire ended. Since then, US and Iranian forces have continued exchanging fire up to this week.
The WSJ report said that Hegseth is extending troop deployments into 2027. The Pentagon is maintaining about 50,000 troops and 19 warships in the region. This includes two aircraft carriers and 13 guided-missile destroyers.
These military assets are engaged in intercepting Iranian missiles, protecting commercial shipping across Hormuz, and blockading Iranian ports. US forces remain ready for larger strikes.
Army air-defence deployments reportedly shifted from nine to 12 months.
The USS Gerald R Ford spent 11 months at sea before returning in May, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt is preparing for a longer-than-normal deployment.
The WSJ reported that elements of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division could remain in the Middle East well into 2027. It quoted Bryan Clark, a former senior Navy official, as saying: "They're setting it up to be sustained over the long haul, meaning well into next year."
As midterms loom, Trump has an Iran war exit dilemma
US officials told the WSJ that Trump is privately discussing with aides whether to declare the war over. Trump favours economic pressure on Iran, which he beilives can force the Islamic Republic to dismantle its nuclear programme.
"I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing. They are just playing out the inevitable. When are the Iranian people going to rise up and fight?," Trump recently wrote on Truth Social.
Some of his aides warned that further escalation could damage Republican prospects in the November midterm elections. Trump maintains he doesn't care about the midterms, and that the poll prospects are not influencing his decisions. The strain is already visible, even as he inisists that the US forces remain ready to strike "any time we want".
Also read: Iran launches retaliatory strikes with missiles and drones; Trump warns of ‘much harder’ attack
According to Tom Karako of the Center for Strategic and International Studies , a further extension of air-defence deployments could wea out troops, delay maintenance and hamper longer-term modernisation.
But a recent military letter to families of servicemen said "a longer tour weighs heavily on every household, including our own."
What are these mixed signals telling us? Trump may be looking for a political and diplomatic exit from the Iran war. But Hegseth's Pentagon is positioning US forces for a conflict that could last well into 2027. At this time, both are looking for a fig leaf, a headline that they can take to Americans and the world, to claim victory against Iran.
