John Bolton ordered the Pentagon to come up with an “updated” plan for getting more American troops into the Middle East to fight a war against Iran. The plans are in now, according to officials, who say that the options envision 120,000 US ground troops in the Middle East.
Instead, the 120,000 is just the next step in the ongoing US escalations toward war, and is envisioned as a response to any Iranian threat on US forces or interests, or any hint of acceleration of its nuclear program.
US officials quoted in the media about the plan are everywhere and always supportive of the idea, and the underlying narrative of an “Iranian threat.” Some argue that the fact that the Pentagon would send 120,000 troops and not even invade proves how big the threat is, while others say that the 120,000 troops would be a “scare tactic” to warn Iran off any aggressive moves.
This is quite contrary to Europe’s take on US policy, with European officials calling on the US to exercise some restraint, and expressing concern that US moves are liable to miscalculate and start a war through sheer accident.
*
Note to readers: please click the share buttons below. Forward this article to your email lists. Crosspost on your blog site, internet forums. etc.
Jason Ditz is news editor of Antiwar.com.
Featured image is from NEO
The original source of this article is Antiwar.com
Disclaimer: The contents of this article are of sole responsibility of the author(s). The Centre for Research on Globalization will not be responsible for any inaccurate or incorrect statement in this article. The Centre of Research on Globalization grants permission to cross-post Global Research articles on community internet sites as long the source and copyright are acknowledged together with a hyperlink to the original Global Research article. For publication of Global Research articles in print or other forms including commercial internet sites, contact: [email protected]
www.globalresearch.ca contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available to our readers under the provisions of "fair use" in an effort to advance a better understanding of political, economic and social issues. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes other than "fair use" you must request permission from the
copyright owner.
