In classic fashion of “leading from behind,” top British Empire voices and their Israeli admirers continue to goad U.S. President Donald Trump into joining Israel’s war against Iran. The latest argument in this regard came from a joint op-ed by leading British imperial mouthpiece Sir Niall Ferguson and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Published originally on June 19 in the Free Press and later in The Times of London under the title “Israel Has Done Most of the Job—Now Trump Can Finish It,” the two lay out the well-known fact that it is only the U.S. that possesses the capability to come anywhere close to eliminating Iran’s deepest nuclear sites. The GBU 57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator, carried only by the U.S. B-2 Spirit bomber, should therefore immediately be deployed to strike Iran’s Fordow nuclear site located deep underground, thereby taking “decisive action” to finish off Iran quickly, they argue.
Given that Trump is facing enormous opposition at home, and that such an operation would minimally embroil the U.S. into another long war in the Middle East, the op-ed tries to make the pitch that this whole operation will be quick and easy. Over the past week of Israeli military strikes, they write, “Much of Iran’s nuclear weapons programme now lies in ruins, and many of the scientists who ran it are dead. But one key site remains, at Fordow.” To assuage the fears of political blowback from Trump’s domestic base, they claim: “The action President Trump must decide upon is clearly defined and limited in its duration and scale, since much of the work of defeating Iran has already been done by Israel.”
The authors also pitch to Trump’s self-aggrandizing nature, with an almost messianic emphasis on the need to take advantage of this “rare moment.” They argue: “By destroying Fordow, President Trump would create a new equilibrium in the Middle East and re-establish American leadership.” If he doesn’t, Iran will surely get a nuclear weapon and will go on to threaten Israel, other Persian Gulf states, and even Europe; and as the war drags on and Israel continues to degrade Iran’s capabilities, Tehran will take “desperate measures” such as closing the Strait of Hormuz.
They conclude with: “Israel has moved and continues to move with determination and dispatch. The support of allies, first and foremost the U.S., has been crucial. Now, with a single exertion of its unmatched military strength, the U.S. can shorten the war, prevent wider escalation and end the principal threat to Middle Eastern stability…. This is a rare moment when strategic alignment and operational momentum converge. It must not be missed.”
