Foreign Relations

Joint Chiefs Chairman Caine Said to Press Trump Advisers for an Iran War Off-Ramp

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Courtroom-sketch editorial illustration of a gray-haired air force general in dress uniform seated at a hearing table, his shoulder insignia visible, turning to look warily past the out-of-focus back of a man's head in the left foreground, while a raised hand gestures beside a cluster of microphones at the right, rendered in warm ochre and slate-blue chalk strokes on textured paper.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine has privately urged Trump administration officials to find an off-ramp from the war with Iran, arguing that escalation options could backfire and that airpower alone is unlikely to achieve President Donald Trump's stated objectives, three sources familiar with the discussions said. Caine raised the matter with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance. Israel broadly backed a more aggressive operation that Trump declined to approve in late July, after Gulf partners warned of Iranian strikes on their energy infrastructure. Depleted American munitions stockpiles, which also supply Israel, were cited as a factor.

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