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Baron West of Spithead was head of the U.K. Navy in 2006, and served as a civilian in Labor Government until 2010. He is quoted in @guardian:
“Some powerful groups in Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United States want war and think a precision strike against key parts of Iran’s military capability would lead to regime change. They are wrong.
It would lead to an open-ended war with catastrophic consequences across the region and the globe.” theguardian.com/commentisfree/… I don’t know the advice @realDonaldTrump is receiving from @SecPompeo, @AmbJohnBolton @DeptofDefense or allies in region, but neither does the baron.
Classic “take force off the table” reflexive response to clear Iranian aggression and, if adopted as policy, would guarantee more seizures and attacks. The baron’s quote full of “insinuendo” about “powerful groups” quickly found its way to @washingtonpost. washingtonpost.com/world/middle_e…
When throwing a charge like this into an article about a crisis, editors ought to have reporters at least hint at degree of current knowledge of the writer/speaker. West is a patriot and distinguished warrior (hero of Falklands) but I doubt he’s briefed about options on table.
