Is the US setting the stage for military conflict with Iran? As tensions rise between the two sides, will the tug-of-war in the Persian Gulf lead to an open war? The Trump administration is deploying an additional 1500 military personnel and a dozen fighter jets to the Middle East. The Pentagon says that this is in response to ‘Iran’s plans to attack the US and its interests in the region’. The build-up is making many here in Washington nervous about a looming military confrontation despite the recent softening of Trump's tone. It all started when US National Security Advisor, John Bolton, announced the deployment of an aircraft carrier battlegroup to the Gulf in reaction to what he described as troubling threats from Iran, without providing any specific evidence. Tehran is now threatening to reconsider its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the nuclear agreement that President Trump withdrew from in May 2018. Trump also slapped on Iran the harshest financial sanctions ever imposed on any nation. So what will come out of this standoff?

Guests:

Thomas Shannon Jr

Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs from 2016 until 2018 and Acting Secretary of State in early 2017.

Jamal Abdi

President of the National Iranian American Council.

David Pollock

Fellow at the Washington Institute and former Senior Advisor for the Broader Middle East at the US State Department.

#BiggerThanFive #Trump #Iran