Admiral Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), presented potential military options regarding Iran to President Donald Trump on Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing informed sources.
"The top U.S. commander in the Middle East briefed Trump on military options concerning Iran during a rare in-person visit to the White House, as the U.S. considers the possibility of resuming military operations," the report states.
It is noted that the meeting was also attended by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth and the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Kane.
According to sources cited by the publication, other cabinet members also took part in the discussion, which covered a range of additional topics.
"As one of the individuals familiar with the matter indicated, the meeting of high-ranking officials followed a discussion on Wednesday, during which military leaders conferred with Vice President-elect JD Vance," the report notes.
The newspaper suggests that, given that Cooper rarely briefs Trump in person, this could signal that the U.S. is moving toward significant military operations. Representatives for the Pentagon and Central Command declined to comment on the situation.
On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal, citing sources, claimed that Vance, acting on Trump’s instructions, sent a secret letter to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. The publication alleged that the vice president was attempting to test the waters for resuming peace talks and preventing further large-scale U.S. strikes against Iran following the November midterm elections.
Trump previously denied reports that he had instructed Vance to reach out to the Iranian leadership. For its part, the Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran has not yet responded to Vance’s letter.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has said that meeting Tehran’s seven conditions is the only way to achieve progress in talks with the United States.
Ghalibaf said in a social media post that Iran’s conditions “have been repeatedly and clearly stated to the mediators”.
“The carrot-and-stick approach has no effect on Iran. Progress can only be achieved once Iran’s seven conditions have been agreed upon,” he added.
Source of information: Global News Agencies including REUTERS / TASS / AFP / ANADOLU / INT.RU / Al Jazeera / CNN
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