{"id":5983,"date":"2026-02-22T11:07:59","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T11:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/the-d-brief-iran-buildups-unclear-aims-armys-drone-contest-board-of-peace-convened-more-ufo-info-and-a-bit-more\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T11:07:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T11:07:59","slug":"the-d-brief-iran-buildups-unclear-aims-armys-drone-contest-board-of-peace-convened-more-ufo-info-and-a-bit-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/the-d-brief-iran-buildups-unclear-aims-armys-drone-contest-board-of-peace-convened-more-ufo-info-and-a-bit-more\/","title":{"rendered":"The D Brief: Iran buildup\u2019s unclear aims; Army\u2019s drone contest; Board of Peace, convened; More UFO info?; And a bit more."},"content":{"rendered":"
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As the Pentagon prepares for war with Iran, the White House hasn\u2019t yet decided what the purpose of such an attack would be,<\/strong> two major U.S. newspapers reported since Wednesday. According to the Wall Street Journal<\/em>, \u201cThe U.S. is ready to take action against Iran, but President Trump hasn\u2019t decided whether to order strikes or\u2014if he does order them\u2014whether the aim would be to halt Iran\u2019s already-battered nuclear program, wipe out its missile force or try to topple the regime.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cRarely in modern times has the United States prepared to conduct a major act of war with so little explanation and so little public debate,\u201d<\/em><\/strong> David Sanger of the New York Times<\/em> reports. \u201cThe president has given no speeches preparing the American public for a strike on a country of about 90 million people, and sought no approval from Congress. He has not explained why he has chosen this moment to confront Iran instead of, for example, North Korea, which in the years after Mr. Trump\u2019s failed negotiations in the first term has expanded its nuclear arsenal to 60 or more warheads, by U.S. intelligence estimates, and is working to demonstrate they can reach the United States.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s military planners have given him several paths for conflict, including \u201ckill[ing] scores of Iranian political and military leaders,<\/em><\/strong> with the goal of overthrowing the government\u2026as well as an air attack that would be limited to striking targets including nuclear and ballistic-missile facilities,\u201d the Journal <\/em>reports. \u201cBoth would involve a potentially weekslong operation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump says he wants to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.<\/em><\/strong> \u201cThey can’t have a nuclear weapon and they’ve been told that very strongly,\u201d he said Thursday. But in this regard, \u201che is in something of a diplomatic box,\u201d Sanger writes. \u201cHe faces pressure to show that any new agreement he reached goes well beyond the 2015 deal\u201d reached by President Obama. \u201cBut if he signs an agreement that does not address the [Iranian regime\u2019s] missiles, he will appear to have sold out Israel.\u201d And if the deal he agrees to doesn\u2019t stop the regime from shooting protesters, \u201che will have abandoned a generation of Iranians who see the United States as their last chance to open the country up.\u201d And on top of all this, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants Trump to help kill all of Iran\u2019s current leaders once and for all, at least in part to cement Bibi and Trump\u2019s legacy throughout the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One important question: Is a U.S. attack on Iran legal?<\/em><\/strong> At this point, it certainly doesn\u2019t seem so. For example, Iran poses no imminent threat to the U.S., and article 1(8) of the Constitution says only Congress has the power to \u201cdeclare war.\u201d But just as its decision to circumvent Congress and recast the Defense Department as the \u201cWar Department,\u201d the Trump White House seems content to view war as more of a vibe than a legitimate endeavor sanctioned by American law and the courts. That\u2019s partly why U.S. allies in Europe are especially concerned these days, and why its neighbor to the north appears to be the most concerned of all.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The U.S. won\u2019t have the use of British airbases for an attack on Iran,<\/em><\/strong> the Times<\/em> reported Thursday. \u201cIn a rift with Washington, the prime minister is understood to have told Trump that the UK would not allow the use of British facilities at Diego Garcia and RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, which is home to America\u2019s fleet of heavy bombers in Europe.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Coupled with unpopular polling numbers,<\/em><\/strong> the White House\u2019s war vibes are leading some academics to use the phrase \u201cgambling for resurrection\u201d: risky actions undertaken to reverse a leader\u2019s declining political fortunes. Diversionary wars are among the most high-profile examples of this concept in political science.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s TV ally and Fox pundit Sean Hannity is helping to rattle sabers<\/em><\/strong>. \u201cThe mullahs should be very worried,\u201d Hannity said Wednesday night on his show. \u201cAnd I do have a little advice for the radical leaders in Iran. You may want to get on that plane to Russia sooner than you think. Sooner than later. Now would be a good time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump \u201cis closer to a major war in the Middle East than most Americans realize,\u201d<\/em><\/strong> Barak Ravid of Axios reported Wednesday, adding that \u201csources noted it would likely be a joint U.S.-Israeli campaign that’s much broader in scope\u2014and more existential for the regime\u2014than the Israeli-led 12-day war last June.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the attention of Congress and the public otherwise occupied, <\/em><\/strong>there is little public debate about what could be the most consequential U.S. military intervention in the Middle East in at least a decade,\u201d Ravid warns. And \u201cSuch a war would have a dramatic influence on the entire region and major implications for the remaining three years of the Trump presidency.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe B-2 bombers are incredible. I never understood the B-2 bomber.<\/em><\/strong> I\u2019d watch. It\u2019s a wing, and I\u2019ve never quite understood that,\u201d Trump said Thursday in a meandering speech at the first meeting of his Board of Peace. \u201cI’d look at it, I’d say it was beautiful, but what does it do? It carries very big bombs. And, uh, it went into Iran and it totally decimated the nuclear\u2014nuclear potential. And when it did, when it decimated that, uh, all of a sudden, we had peace in the Middle East.\u201d As for what\u2019s next, \u201cyou’re going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Many traditional U.S. allies have rejected his invitation to join the Board of Peace,<\/em><\/strong> including Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden, the UK, Ukraine, and the Vatican. So far, the board\u2019s membership consists \u201cof largely oppressive and authoritarian world leaders,\u201d the Guardian <\/em>reported Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nations that have joined include<\/em><\/strong> Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Egypt, El Salvador, Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kosovo, Mongolia, Morocco, Pakistan, Paraguay, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. \u201cSo far none appear to have tossed in the $1 billion that would give them permanent status,\u201d historian Heather Cox Richardson noted Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The only one who has announced any money for the organization is Trump himself,<\/em><\/strong> who declared Thursday the U.S. will put $10 billion into the group. However, Richardson adds, \u201csince Congress is the only body that can legally appropriate money in our system, it\u2019s unclear how he intends to do this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coverage continues below\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Welcome to this Friday edition of The D Brief,<\/strong> a newsletter focused on developments affecting the future of U.S. national security, brought to you by Ben Watson with Bradley Peniston. It\u2019s more important than ever to stay informed, so we\u2019d like to take a moment to thank you for reading. Share your tips and feedback here. And if you\u2019re not already subscribed, you can do that here. On this day in 1944, <\/em><\/strong>the U.S. and British militaries launched a weeklong campaign of bombing Nazi aircraft factories in central and southern Germany.<\/p>\n

New: The Supreme Court on Friday struck down Trump\u2019s global tariffs,<\/strong> saying the president exceeded his authority by illegally circumventing Congress to carry out his wide-ranging economic campaign that affected many of America\u2019s closest allies. Reuters described it as Trump\u2019s \u201ckey economic and foreign policy tool\u201d and \u201cone that has alienated trading partners, affected financial markets and caused global economic uncertainty.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The 6-3 decision will \u201cforce the government to unwind trade deals with other countries<\/em><\/strong> and potentially pay hefty refunds to importers,\u201d the New York Times<\/em> reports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Additional reading:<\/em><\/strong> \u201cUS growth falls sharply to 1.4% rate in fourth quarter,\u201d the Financial Times <\/em>reported Friday, noting that figure is \u201cfar below Wall Street expectations, as the record federal shutdown hit government spending.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amid preparations for war, Trump just ordered the U.S. government to release information on alleged aliens and UFOs,<\/strong> the president announced on social media Thursday. \u201cBased on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters,\u201d he said in an evening post.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Panning out: \u201cTrump\u2019s push to focus on aliens comes at the beginning of a hectic midterm election year,<\/em><\/strong> with a heavy public focus on information disclosed in files related to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein\u2014many of which mention Trump by name\u2014as well as the issue of affordability, which has weighed on his popularity ratings,\u201d Bloomberg reports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s face is now on the Department of Justice building <\/strong>after workers unveiled a large vertical banner Thursday in a gesture the Associated Press described as \u201ca striking symbol of the erosion of the department\u2019s tradition of independence from White House control.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSimilar banners were installed at other federal buildings last year,<\/em><\/strong> including the Agriculture Department and Labor Department,\u201d adding to \u201ca string of efforts by the administration to emblazon the president\u2019s name and face on everything from coins to national park passes,\u201d the New York Times<\/em> reports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch displays are more often a feature of countries run by dictators, not democratically elected leaders,\u201d<\/em><\/strong> the Times<\/em> notes. AP reminds readers as well that \u201cThe Trump administration has opened investigations into a number of the president\u2019s perceived enemies, amplifying concerns that the agency is being used to exact revenge on his political foes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump also said Thursday that he wants to \u201ctest the law\u201d and give himself the Congressional Medal of Honor<\/em><\/strong> for a visit to the Middle East in 2018. \u201cI decided to go to Iraq and I flew to Iraq. I was extremely brave, in fact, so brave I wanted to give myself the Congressional Medal of Honor,\u201d the president told a crowd Thursday at a rally in Georgia. \u201cAnd I said, no, it’s a little stretch if I gave myself one of them. But it’s one of those things. Someday I’m going to try. I’m going to test the law.\u201d He added, \u201cMaybe I\u2019ll win in court after everyone sues me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

And lastly this week, the Army\u2019s looking for the best drone pilots.<\/strong> You\u2019ve probably heard of Best Ranger or Best Sapper: Army competitions that test the skills of teams of infantrymen and combat engineers. This year, the service added Best Drone Warfighter, Defense One<\/em>\u2019s Meghann Myers reported Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The inaugural battle kicked off Tuesday at the University of Alabama in Huntsville,<\/em><\/strong> bringing teams from across the active, Reserve, and National Guard components of the Army to test their skills and possibly win a slot on the service\u2019s drone competition team. The three-day meet included two different lanes, plus a separate innovation competition where soldiers could submit white papers and custom drone builds, or demonstrate their piloting skills.<\/p>\n

Why now? The Army is moving away from its previous drone operator model,<\/em><\/strong> which trained soldiers in its aviation branch to operate specific platforms. Instead, it\u2019s likely that soldiers with additional training in operating UAS will be integrated into infantry, armor and other frontline units, where new doctrine will have them working alongside machine gunners, Abrams tanks, and howitzers. Continue reading, here.\u00a0\n\n<\/svg><\/p>\n<\/div>\n