Iran said its military was “waiting” for a possible U.S. ground invasion—accusing the U.S. of planning to deploy ground troops while publicly talking about potential peace negotiations—days after the U.S. deployed 3,500 more sailors and Marines to the Middle East.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker blamed the U.S. for “secretly planning” a ground invasion while openly talking about peace negotiations.
Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images
Key Takeaways
- Iranian Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf on Sunday accused the U.S. of “secretly planning” a ground invasion despite “sending messages of negotiation and dialogue.”
- The Iranian military was “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” Ghalibaf threatened, according to a translation of the message on Iranian state news reported by the Associated Press.
- Ghalibaf also said Iran would not surrender to the U.S., insisting “far be it from us to accept humiliation.”
- Pakistan hosted talks about de-escalating the Iran war with officials from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey on Sunday, to potentially offer a venue for peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran in the future, Reuters reported.
- The U.S. previously sent a 15-point ceasefire plan proposal to Iran through Pakistani intermediaries, special envoy Steve Witkoff said on Thursday—although Iran has reportedly already rejected this offer.
Key Background
About 3,500 sailors and Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in the region on Friday, U.S. Central Command said in a statement on social media. The Marines arrived onboard the U.S.S. Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship, and are part of a specialized unit that could help the military seize Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf. The unit was deployed with aircraft and “amphibious assault and tactical assets,” Central Command said. The Pentagon began drawing up plans for weeks of ground operations in Iran, the Washington Post reported on Saturday night, however it is unclear if President Donald Trump will approve these plans. Earlier last week, Axios reported the Trump administration was considering further troop deployments as part of a “final blow” against Iran, while the Wall Street Journal reported this could mean up to 17,000 more U.S. soldiers, including roughly 10,000 ground troops.
What Has The Trump Administration Said?
The president has not committed to deploying ground troops to Iran, instead threatening the nation with continued air strikes. “No, I’m not putting troops anywhere,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on March 19. “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you. But I’m not putting troops. We will do whatever is necessary.” Speaking to reporters in France on Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was confident the U.S. could achieve its stated objectives of destroying Iran’s missile factories, drone factories, air force and navy without a ground invasion. “We are ahead of schedule on most of them, and we can achieve them without any ground troops—without any.”
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