Washington, D.C. – February 2026 General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, expressed serious reservations about a potential large-scale military operation against Iran during a high-level White House meeting last week with President Trump and senior aides, according to reports in The New York Times and The Washington Post.

Caine reportedly warned that U.S. munitions stockpiles have been “substantially depleted” due to ongoing support for Israel’s defense operations and sustained aid to Ukraine. He highlighted the operational complexities of striking Iran, the high risk of American casualties, and the near-certainty of limited allied participation.

The concerns were echoed in separate Pentagon briefings this month, where Caine emphasized that any campaign would face unique difficulties — from Iran’s dispersed and hardened nuclear sites to its massive missile arsenal designed for saturation attacks.

Combined with recent comments by U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff (who reportedly told Israeli officials the U.S. prefers diplomacy over military action), the disclosures paint a picture of internal U.S. hesitation despite the massive naval and air buildup in the region (including the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group, eight destroyers, and B-1 bombers).

Iranian officials and state media have already seized on the reports as evidence of American weakness, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stating that “the U.S. knows the price of any adventure would be catastrophic.”