Khaberni - Despite US President Donald Trump's announcement of extending the negotiation deadline with Iran until April 6th, to make room for diplomacy and the possibility of reaching an agreement, American military reinforcements on the ground in the region suggest readiness for an escalation scenario.
Officials in the US Department of Defense, familiar with the planning, revealed that the Pentagon is considering sending up to 10,000 additional troops to the Middle East to expand the military options available to Trump, according to the "Wall Street Journal" reported today, Friday.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon announced that it has deployed fast unmanned boats to patrol and suicide boats as part of its operations targeting Iran, marking the first time Washington has confirmed the use of such boats in an ongoing conflict, according to Reuters.
Uranium Hunt
Concurrently, informed sources explained that Trump is considering military options for escalation against Iran should diplomacy fail.
They revealed that the Pentagon has plans to deploy ground forces to control targets inside Iran. They indicated that the US administration discussed a proposal to remove enriched uranium from Iran, as reported by CNN.
Furthermore, the sources clarified that officials in the US administration discussed different ideas for extracting the enriched uranium buried inside the Iranian nuclear facilities, a task some believe might give Trump the decisive victory needed to end the war.
Control of Khark Island
Officials also deliberated options for controlling Khark Island, which exports about 90% of Iranian crude oil exports, or issuing a permit for an airstrike aimed at completely destroying its oil infrastructure.
Additionally, the administration considered controlling other islands in strategic locations near the Strait of Hormuz, which could weaken Iran's ability to threaten oil tankers attempting to pass through the waterway.
White House officials believe that controlling Khark Island specifically would completely bankrupt the "Revolutionary Guard" in Iran, according to one of the officials, which could pave the way to ending the war permanently.
Additional Deadline
Previously, the American president had announced that he would halt strikes on the Iranian energy sector for an additional ten days, until April 6, to allow for negotiations between the Iranian and American sides, conducted through intermediaries including Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey.
Note that he had given Tehran until this evening, Friday, to reach an agreement before the bombing of energy facilities.
Trump confirmed that the extension was at the request of Iran
However, some mediators pointed out that Iran did not request a temporary 10-day halt to the attacks on power plants, and it has not yet provided a final response to the American proposal composed of 15 points to end the war.
Gift from Tehran
Iran allowed several oil tankers flying the Pakistani flag to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a move Trump described as a "gift" to the United States, considering it evidence of the Iranian leadership's seriousness in negotiations.
It is noteworthy that Pakistan affirmed yesterday that the United States and Iran are engaged in indirect talks through messages being delivered by Islamabad, and that the Iranian side is studying the American proposals.
This comes as the war that erupted on February 28th, between Iran on one side and Israel and America on the other, enters its 18th day, amid international concerns about its repercussions on the region and the global economy, especially with the paralysis of movement in the vital Strait of Hormuz, following Iranian threats.
