Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg said Friday that U.S. pressure on Iran may have to move beyond strikes on its nuclear and missile capabilities and toward forcing political change, saying on Newsmax that "the only way you're going to get change" is that "you really need a regime change."
Kellogg, who served as the special presidential envoy for Ukraine and previously as national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence, made the remarks on "Rob Schmitt Tonight" after being asked about a Wall Street Journal report that the Pentagon is weighing up to 10,000 additional ground troops for the Middle East.
The Wall Street Journal said Defense Department officials familiar with the planning described that option, and separate reporting earlier this week suggested that 3,000 to 4,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division were expected to deploy to the region, where about 50,000 U.S. troops were already present before those reinforcements.
Kellogg said the administration had already dealt with what he described as its first two objectives: reducing Iran's nuclear capability and weakening its missile threat.
He said economic pressure could play a role, but he argued that a limited use of ground forces against strategic targets would be the likeliest way to produce lasting change, while stopping short of any push to seize Tehran or occupy Iran as a whole.
"You can do that economically. You can do it with limited use of ground forces, not to go into Tehran or go into Iran… But you can take out a couple of key strategic targets," he said.
He pointed to Kharg Island and Bandar Abbas as possible pressure points and said a "limited incursion by ground troops" could help set the stage for broader political change in Tehran.
“I think that would be the way to do it, and hopefully that will lead to regime change,” he said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio struck a more limited public tone Friday.
Speaking after meetings in France, he said the United States could meet its objectives in Iran "without any ground troops" and said recent deployments were meant to give President Donald Trump "maximum optionality" if contingencies emerged.
Kellogg added that the president has accomplished the missions he outlined and that these steps would set the stage for ending a threat the United States has faced for more than four decades.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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