The Pentagon plans to allocate more than $200 billion to continue its military operation against Iran. At the same time, the United States is considering new escalation scenarios.
Funding and a new phase of the war
The Washington Post reports that the US Department of Defense is preparing a request to Congress for over $200 billion in funding. The money would support ongoing military operations against Iran. The total would far exceed what the administration has spent on strikes so far.
The request is likely to trigger debate in Congress. Public support for the effort remains weak. Democrats strongly criticize the plan. Republicans say they support additional funding but have not developed a legislative strategy. They also lack a clear path to overcome the Senate’s 60-vote threshold.
At the same time, Reuters reports that Washington is considering sending thousands of additional troops. Possible missions include securing the Strait of Hormuz. The Trump administration has also discussed deploying ground forces to Kharg Island in Iran. The island handles about 90% of Iran’s oil exports. One official told Reuters the operation could be highly risky. Iran can strike the island with missiles and drones.
Oman’s foreign minister said the United States has lost control of its foreign policy. He added that there is no realistic scenario in which both the US and Israel achieve their goals in this conflict.
US role in Israeli strikes
The United States had prior knowledge of Israel’s strike on Iran and approved it, despite Donald Trump claiming otherwise. Axios reported this, citing sources.
On March 18, Israel struck a natural gas processing facility in southwestern Iran. This marked the first attack on a key Iranian gas site. The outlet said the White House coordinated and approved the strike. US and Israeli officials confirmed this.
Hours later, Iran launched two missile strikes on gas facilities in Qatar. Among them is the world’s largest liquefied natural gas production complex. After the first strike, Qatari officials asked the US whether it had known about Israel’s attack.
Trump later wrote on Truth Social that Israeli forces had “violently lashed out” an Iranian gas field “out of anger for what has taken place in the Middle East.” He said the US had no prior knowledge. However, sources told Axios that Trump knew about the strike, unlike Qatar.
Drones spotted in the US
The Washington Post reports that unidentified drones were spotted over a US military base in Washington state. Senior officials, including Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth, live there. The drones appeared after the US issued a global security alert for diplomatic missions and restricted access to several domestic bases due to threats.
According to two informed sources, the drone activity over Fort McNair prompted officials to consider relocating Rubio and Hegseth. However, they ultimately stayed.
Earlier, The Ukrainian Review reported that Finnish President Alexander Stubb discussed a possible deal with Trump on military support in the Strait of Hormuz. He proposed it in exchange for assistance to Ukraine.
