PARIS: The war in the Gulf is still expected to last weeks, not months, and Washington can meet all its objectives without using ground troops, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday.
Rubio told reporters after meeting G7 counterparts in France that Washington was “on or ahead of schedule in that operation, and expect to conclude it at the appropriate time here — a matter of weeks, not months.”
While he said Washington could achieve its aims without ground troops, he acknowledged that it was deploying some to the region “to give the President maximum optionality and maximum opportunity to adjust the contingencies, should they emerge.”
Washington has dispatched two contingents of thousands of Marines to the region, the first of which is due to arrive around the end of March aboard a huge amphibious assault ship. The Pentagon is also expected to deploy thousands of elite airborne soldiers.
#WATCH: @US Secretary of State @SecRubio says operations against #Iran are “on or ahead of schedule” and could conclude within weeks, warning against any attempt by Tehran to control or impose tolls in the #HormuzStrait #IranWar https://t.co/Il7QsmLt9i pic.twitter.com/ShDzjZyVxP
