Gen. Mark Milley, the Army Chief of Staff and nominee to become the new
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff testified to the Senate Armed
Services Committee on Thursday, setting out his foreign policy
priorities.
Gen. Milley was keen to warn against any withdrawal from Afghanistan,
saying a “premature” withdrawal would be a “strategic mistake.” He did
not clarify how much longer beyond the 18 years currently in would not
be “premature.” He also argued the US should keep a “modest number” of
troops in Iraq and Syria indefinitely.
Interestingly, Milley was less upbeat about starting a war with Iran, saying it would have a “significant impact” on US military goals of confronting Russia and China. He added that he doesn’t think anyone is seriously considering invading Iran.
Milley urged the US to approach Iran “from the diplomatic angle,” while
saying he’d also like to see diplomacy to avoid conflicts with Russia
and China, warning China might “have the capability to defeat us by
mid-century.”
Joint Chiefs Nominee Opposes Iran War, Would Stay in Afghanistan
Says Iran would get in the way of confronting Russia, China
Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.
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