US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine has privately said in recent weeks that the United States needs “an off-ramp” from the war with Iran, believing that the military options currently being considered could backfire and that airstrikes alone are unlikely to accomplish the administration’s goals, CNN reported Friday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

According to the report, Caine was not the only administration official who believes the US was at a crossroads in the war. He reportedly discussed the possibility of an off-ramp with other top advisers to US President Donald Trump, including Vice President JD Vance, CIA chief John Ratcliffe and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Caine met with the officials to ensure they were in agreement on Iran ahead of planned meetings with Trump, aiming to outline the shortfalls of military action on that front, according to the report.

A source quoted by CNN lamented that the options now under consideration were not weighed sooner: “It is rough when you are looking at those options in the middle of the war instead of before it starts.”

Despite his reservations, the report said Caine told Trump that if he wanted to move ahead in escalating against Iran, “We could absolutely wreck them.”

In response to the report, a spokesperson for Caine told the cable network, “We do not discuss the Chairman’s confidential conversations with the President, the Secretary, or other senior leaders, nor do we comment on anonymous, agenda-driven characterizations of those conversations by sources who were not privy to them.”

Iran, Oman close in on Hormuz deal

The reported discussions came as Iran and Oman appeared to be nearing an agreement on arrangements for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has effectively blockaded since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran on February 28.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said........

© The Times of Israel