What happened
A retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel with experience in Vietnam and Desert Storm has stated that winning in Iran requires coalition ground forces. The author argues that air power alone cannot secure vital waterways or achieve a lasting political settlement.
The conflict with Iran has highlighted the limitations of air power, with the US and Israel demonstrating their ability to strike Iranian military infrastructure with precision, but failing to resolve the central strategic problem. Iran continues to contest the Strait of Hormuz, and the country refuses to disavow its nuclear ambitions.
The author suggests that the key to victory is the elimination of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which requires a more comprehensive military strategy. The author draws on their experience in Vietnam and Desert Storm to argue that a coalition of ground forces, including Middle Eastern nations, is necessary to guarantee freedom of navigation and impose conditions that Tehran refuses to accept.
The author emphasizes that military superiority does not automatically produce strategic victory and that wars remain contests of political will fought by human beings. The author argues that American leaders must answer key questions, including what constitutes victory, whose forces will achieve it, and how to return the region to a lasting peace.
