Summary

Following Iran's strong retaliation, the United States is mulling a ground invasion of the country. However, it would have significant implications for the US. © UnknownFighter jets aboard carrier Despite ongoing negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, the United States and Israel attacked Iran, violating international rules and norms. Most of Iran's top-level military and civilian leadership were assassinated in the US and Israeli attack on February 28, 2026. In retaliation, Iran targeted Israeli cities and its nuclear and energy infrastructure, along with key US military facilities in the region. Iran also closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global maritime oil trade, which increased global inflation as energy and oil prices surged worldwide.Since February 28, Iran has been continuously targeting Israeli and US interests in the Middle East. Iran's strong retaliation against the United States and Israel and its closure of the Strait of Hormuz have exasperated US President Trump. Surging global inflation due to his unnecessary "war of choice," as Americans call it, has made him desperate to secure a deal over the issue of closure of the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump's frustration is evident from his simultaneous statement about continuing the war and ending it through diplomatic negotiations. Contradictions in Strategy and Leadership Due to increasing contradictions between Trump's rhetoric and actions, people around the world are curious about the future of this war. Following President Trump's statement regarding talks with Iran, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the Israeli attacks on Iran would continue. On March 25, the Zionist Prime Minister even ordered the Israeli military to speed up its air campaign for the next 48 hours against Iran to destroy as much of its arms industry as possible. Similarly, the US Central Command, on the night when Trump talked about negotiations, reported that air strikes against Iran were carried out extensively.The cost of the US-Israel and Iran war has already spiraled out of control. The Gulf countries are still unable to recover from the shock of this unexpected war. Amongst all this, a ground invasion of Iran would prove catastrophic for the world, and it would push the war into an 'irreversible' phase. Once the United States starts the ground invasion of Iran, it would become nearly impossible to stop the war, and the detrimental impacts of this war would increase manifold. For such an invasion, a clear objective and aim of the war need to be defined first. However, the US and Israeli leadership have failed to define a clear objective of this war.Shifting Goals and the Risks of Ground War Initially, the US and Israel stated that their goal was to remove the Islamic regime and end the country's nuclear and missile program. However, after their failure to spark a native uprising against the Ayatollah regime and Iran's strong retaliation, President Trump's objective has apparently shifted towards opening the Strait of Hormuz. Pakistan's Minister of Defense, Khawaja Asif, also mocked the US by stating, "The goal of the war seems to have shifted to opening the Strait of Hormuz, which was open before the war." This shifting objective of the war indicates that the US policymakers are unable to define a clear aim of the war they started at the behest of Israel. The absence of a clear objective has resulted in a military posture that no longer aligns with the initially stated goals of the war, disrupting US military planning. The ground invasion of Iran would not be possible with a few divisions, but it would require a complete military ecosystem. Iran has already mobilized one million soldiers to counter a possible US ground invasion of the country. Therefore, deploying insufficient military forces in Iran would create an imbalance, resulting only in casualties of the US soldiers. With the increasing number of military casualties, Trump's political stature will also diminish, as the argument that "the US troops are sacrificing their lives for Israel" will strengthen. If the United States seeks to control the Strait of Hormuz and nearby islands, it would compel Iran to respond with full military might, as it is ready to sacrifice its own energy infrastructure, which has already been significantly damaged by Israeli and US attacks. Similarly, a ground invasion of Iran through the Kurdish region is also impossible for the US, as it would result in a protracted war between the two sides. A prolonged war between the two sides would further increase the economic cost of this war.Therefore, a ground invasion of Iran, especially under the current circumstances, is impossible. President Trump's popularity in the US has already declined to a record low after his involvement in this Israeli war. A ground invasion of Iran would further increase political hardships for Donald Trump. However, if he continues to pursue a conflicting policy stance regarding the Iran war, it would be impossible to halt the war diplomatically and further increase mistrust between the two sides.