Commander of the US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, stated that although US and Israeli airstrikes have significantly weakened Iran’s military capabilities, Tehran continues to maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz.
elchi reports that Cooper spoke at a hearing titled “Conflict with Iran and Military Readiness in Africa,” held by the Senate Armed Services Committee alongside General Dagvin Anderson, commander of the US Africa Command (AFRICOM).
In his opening remarks at the hearing, Cooper stated that the US and Israel have carried out more than 1,450 strikes against Iran’s weapons production facilities, claiming that these strikes have damaged and destroyed more than 85 percent of Iran’s ballistic missile, drone, and naval industrial base.
Cooper told senators that rebuilding Iran’s fleet would take “a generation” and that restoring drone and missile production would also take years. Claiming that US and Israeli airstrikes have significantly weakened Iran’s military capabilities, Cooper stated that Tehran still maintains control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Cooper said, “Iran’s ability to disrupt trade through the straits has been significantly reduced, but their voice is very loud, and these threats are clearly heard by the trade and insurance sectors.”
Cooper claimed that US forces have destroyed more than 90 percent of Iran’s 8,000 naval mines, which has prevented them from being deployed in the strait, but added that Iran still possesses some capabilities that could threaten ships.
In response to a question, Cooper stated that the US has the option to militarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but that is a decision for policymakers.
Regarding the question of how long the conflict with Iran will last, Cooper stated that despite the US Navy’s blockade of Iranian ports and the exchange of fire that occurred last week, the ceasefire reached on April 7 is still in effect. Cooper did not provide any timeline for when American troops might begin to withdraw from the region. Cooper refused to answer a question from Democratic Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin regarding whether China and Russia were providing intelligence to Iran, stating that the matter should be discussed in a closed session. Virginia Senator and fellow Democrat Tim Kaine also stated during the hearing that the Senate Armed Services Committee has not seen the opinion prepared by the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel that justifies President Donald Trump’s authority to attack Iran. Kaine said: “We are being asked to fund a $1.5 trillion budget, but as members of the Armed Services Committee, our request to see the relevant Justice Department opinion justifying this war has been denied. If they won’t let us see the legal justification for the war, what are they hiding?” According to US media reports, US Department of Defense (Pentagon) officials informed members of the US Congress this week that the cost of the US/Israel-Iran war has increased from $25 billion to $29 billion over the past month.
Şayəstə