U.S. Vice President’s Direct Contact with Military Commanders

The New York Times reported that U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, in an unusual move over the past several months, directly contacted several senior American military commanders deployed in different parts of the world and asked them to provide candid and unvarnished assessments of the war with Iran and the prospects of the conflict continuing.

According to the report, Vance was seeking assessments that differed from official reports and what he perceived as the flattering atmosphere surrounding the White House. He asked the commanders to speak without political considerations about the United States’ ability to sustain military operations, the level of strain being placed on American forces, and the likelihood of achieving the objectives set for the war.

People familiar with the conversations told The New York Times that some of these assessments left Vance deeply concerned about the overall U.S. strategy in the war with Iran and its prospects for success.

The revelations come at a time when Donald Trump has continued to repeat his usual boasts in recent days, claiming that the war will end after the midterm elections in November because, according to him, “the Iranians can no longer take the resistance.”

The Wall Street Journal also reported yesterday that the reality is the exact opposite of Trump’s claims. According to the newspaper, White House officials and Trump’s advisers have told him that the Iranians are putting up fierce resistance and that the war could potentially continue until the end of his presidency in 2029.

The newspaper, citing several informed U.S. officials, reported that “J.D. Vance, Marco Rubio and other officials have held secret discussions with Trump at the White House, warning that Tehran could withstand sanctions, a blockade and military strikes, and that the war could even continue until 2029.”

The New York Times report comes amid earlier reports about growing concerns among senior U.S. commanders in the region over severe shortages of interceptor missiles and air-defense munitions.

The New York Times reported that, according to some assessments, Brad Cooper, the senior U.S. military commander in West Asia, had concluded that the air campaign had reached a point where its effectiveness had been significantly diminished and that the number of meaningful targets that could still be achieved through airstrikes had become limited.

The newspaper further reported that Vance—who had been critical of America’s long-term military conflicts even before the war began—has in recent weeks continued to emphasize the need to use military and diplomatic tools simultaneously.

Vance had also warned about the possibility of continued tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, saying that even limited attacks on ships could discourage some commanders and shipping companies from using the route that the United States had proposed.

The report also said that the significance of Vance’s communications with military commanders lies in the fact that these conversations present a narrative different from the claim of a rapid U.S. victory in the war with Iran.

According to this alternative assessment, although Iran’s military capabilities have been weakened, Washington’s own stockpiles of munitions, air-defense capabilities, force deployments, and ability to sustain a prolonged war have also become severely constrained.