Ari Aramesh, a Washington-based national security expert and political analyst, says the United States now faces three clear options as protests in Iran intensify and the regime continues its crackdown on demonstrators.
Speaking to ILTV, Ari Aramesh argued that recent statements by US President Donald Trump have created both momentum and confusion. Trump initially issued unusually forceful warnings to Tehran, declaring that if the regime fired on protesters, the United States would “shoot back,” and telling Iranians that “help is on the way.” According to Aramesh, those comments emboldened protesters and signaled a sharp departure from the more cautious language used by previous US administrations.
The first option, Aramesh said, is the worst-case scenario: Washington backs down. Trump recently suggested that killings in Iran may have stopped and that executions are not planned. Aramesh rejected those claims, warning that failing to enforce a red line would damage US credibility and leave Iranian civilians vulnerable to even harsher repression.
The second option is limited military action. Aramesh compared this to past US strikes in Syria, where targeted attacks sent a message but ultimately failed to change the balance of power. In Iran, he said, such a move could provoke retaliation by the regime against unarmed protesters without bringing about meaningful change.
The third option, which Aramesh called the most effective, is a sustained and organized air campaign. This would focus on crippling the regime’s command structure by targeting political and military leadership, Revolutionary Guard infrastructure, and communications systems. He argued that such an approach could hasten the collapse of the Islamic Republic without US boots on the ground.
Aramesh said a post-regime Iran would dramatically reshape the Middle East and allow Washington to shift greater focus toward the Indo-Pacific and competition with China.
Watch the full interview:
HELP IS ON ITS WAY?
(ILTV)
