The silence of Gen. Caine on Iran War Leaves Questions About Military Strategy

In nearly 14 hours of congressional testimony in recent weeks, General Dan Caine was repeatedly asked versions of the same two questions: How did the world’s most powerful military allow the Iranians to cut off the flow of oil in the Strait of Hormuz, and what could it do to get the ships moving again?

The answers presented by General Caine highlight the tightrope he is walking. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, he has been forced out of the political conflict sparked by the Iran war. But you work for a president who demands absolute loyalty.

In public, General Caine has defined the military’s mission narrowly, an approach he took Tuesday as frustrated Democratic and Republican lawmakers pressed him and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to outline their plans to open the tide and end the war.

“Our military objectives have always been clear,” General Caine said. He spoke of “directing Iran’s missile programs,” destroying its defense industrial base and preventing Iranian forces from threatening US forces and allies in the region. He repeatedly praised the dedication of the US military during the war.

But he avoided any discussion of broader US military strategy.

“Did you expect the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the impact it will have on the availability of oil in many countries, including here in the United States?” asked Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine.

“We have a very good staff at the Pentagon,” he said, “and we’re always looking at the range of military branches and what’s next. I’m not going to comment on any specifics because that extends to any advice I might give the president.”

Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island, tried again a few minutes later. “Have you ever been surprised by the resistance of the Iranians?” he asked.

“I always think the enemy will resist it,” said General Caine. He declined to say whether he had conveyed those views to President Trump before launching the war.

General Caine has been similarly evasive about the damage caused by Iranian missile and drone strikes, which are an important indicator of the effectiveness of the US bombing campaign and the continuation of the war. “All of our war damage assessment issues are classified, and it would not be appropriate for me to comment,” he said on Tuesday.

He also revealed reports that the US military has fired a number of expensive weapons, such as long-range missiles designed for war with China. Asked about such shortages on Tuesday, General Caine replied: “We have enough weapons for what we are tasked to do right now.”

General Caine’s public debate came two weeks ago when Senator Gary Peters, Democrat of Michigan, asked him to define the “center of gravity” in the war with Iran.

The term is based on the US military doctrine and Prussian military teacher Carl von Clausewitz, who described it as the source of the enemy’s power, “the center of all power and movement on which everything depends.”

In the Persian Gulf War of 1991, as the United States wanted to expel Iraqi forces from Kuwait, General Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, described the center of gravity as the Iraqi forces in Iraq.

Twenty years later, as the Obama administration struggled to craft a new strategy for Afghanistan, Adm. Mike Mullen, who also chaired it, described it as building an Afghan government that had the support of its citizens.

“The most important thing is that we put the Afghan people at the center, and that they become the center of gravity,” he said.

General Caine refused to explain Mr. Peters is the center of gravity in the Iran war, and said the decision should be made by American political leaders.

Some of his frustrations are a product of working for Mr. Trump, who has been trying to maintain his negotiating flexibility by not locking his administration into war-binding goals without making sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon.

The status of Mr. Trump’s personality – his willingness to change his mind almost daily – also puts military leaders in a difficult position. Speaking publicly about war strategy risks being opposed by the commander-in-chief.

Mr. Peters, a Navy veteran, presented his own diagnosis. He said the center of gravity was the Strait of Hormuz where about 20 percent of the world’s oil flows.

“We will not end this war until we take power in a way that will give us an opportunity,” he said.

At the White House Situation Room meetings with the president before the war, General Caine would appear, although still cautious, US officials said. He expressed hope that an extended war with Iran would significantly deplete America’s arsenal of critical weapons, US officials said. And he sounded the alarm about Iran’s risks of blocking the flow.

But he also said that as the president’s chief military adviser, it is his job to present options to Mr. Trump, not taking a strong stand or making policy.

Some military analysts have praised General Caine’s approach. “Overall I think he was incredibly smart, and rightfully so,” said Eliot Cohen, a historian and State Department official during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. “It is up to his political leaders how they want to talk about it.”

Some say he gave up a lot of land. Concepts like the enemy’s center of gravity “are often understood as a military decision, not a presidential mandate,” said Stephen Biddle, a professor of international affairs at Columbia University and a general adviser to the Pentagon.

One danger to General Caine’s silence is the signal he sends to other officials, said Heidi Urben, a retired Army colonel and associate director of the security studies program at Georgetown University. “When military leaders only talk about strategy, it reinforces this illusion within the ranks that they don’t have to worry about strategy, that other people will take care of those things,” said Ms. Urben.

In Tuesday’s hearings, Republican and Democratic lawmakers complained about the economic pressure the war is putting on Americans.

“There is nothing more important to our members than doing something about these rising gas costs, which are devastating families and farmers across the country,” said Senator Chris Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut.

The senators pressed General Caine to explain that Iran, despite the damage it has sustained and its severe lack of firepower, is still able to continue to control the crisis and inflict such pain on the world economy.

“It’s a complicated situation,” replied General Caine. “Some of this affects commercial smugglers.”

It was an answer that seemed to satisfy no one.

Senator John Hoeven, Republican of North Dakota, pushed General Caine and Mr. Hegseth to present a military plan that could lead to the reopening of the strait.

“That relieves the pressure on us and our partners,” said Mr. Hoeven. “And that’s what I’m asking for.”