When Russia invaded Ukraine, nobody (even the Ukranians) imagined that 5 years later they would have their own missiles hammering Russia 2500kms in the rear. Americans need to start accepting that a) the Iran war will also probably still be going on in 5 years and b) Iran will probably in a better place than they are now, strategically speaking.

▲ malfist 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

> Iran war will also probably still be going on in 5 years

The Russia/Ukraine war has a goal, to make Ukraine either part of Russia or a client state.

What's the goal of the US/Iran war? So far it seems like the goal is to mostly return to the status quo prior to the war. I can't imagine that could continue 5 years because there's just not an objective. Of course, I could easily be mistaken.

▲ wnevets an hour ago | parent | next [-]

> What's the goal of the US/Iran war?

To make certain people money by shorting the oil market. There is a reason why these "peace" deals are always announced on Fridays.

▲ segbrk 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

That’s exactly why it could continue indefinitely. A war with no goal can’t be won. Nor can it be abandoned without bruising powerful egos.

	▲	runako 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Per the spec of the last 25 years, they will let it run until the party in control of the White House changes. The new party will be responsible for the exit & cleanup phase.

▲ bad_haircut72 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Once you've lost something (I think sooner or later, Iran will succeed in sinking a big US ship) then even if you cant win, you also cant leave else its an admission of defeat - so it drags on and on and on.

▲ forshaper 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

There hasn't been a clear goal for an American war since the first Gulf War.

	▲	AlexCoventry 22 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		The goals for intervention in the Serbia/Bosnia conflict were clear and noble, IMO.

▲ 27183 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Initially it's unclear what the goal was. But now the goal must be opening the strait of Hormuz ASAP. There's going to be serious economic fallout if that doesn't happen[0]. It remains to be seen how realistic that goal actually is. Iran has big advantages in their favor.

[0] https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/08/business/iran-oil-trump-strai...

▲ strulovich 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

This is not a very charitable explanation, it takes politicians at their word during a war. (One should not do that, and you can refer to Putin’s language at 2022 as a parallel example to Trump’s)

The initial US goals clearly were: 1. Regime change 2. Denial is of nuclear weapons

It’s also clear these goals were not achieved. So the US changed tactics and goals. (Same as Russia no longer plans on capturing Kiev it seems)

Most likely the US is stalling for time due to oil markets and has the same intentions as before, limited only by current capability.

	▲	AlexCoventry 18 minutes ago \| parent \| next [-]
		According to The Economist, the Iranian theocracy is no longer in power, the IRGC is. Still, not the regime change Trump was hoping for, that's for sure. > Khamenei’s killing has accelerated Iran’s transition from a theocracy to an ambitious nationalistic state dominated by military men. The irgc appears to wield power with few constraints. Clerics who challenged its influence—including former Presidents Mohammad Khatami and Hassan Rouhani—were conspicuously absent from the [funeral] processions. https://www.economist.com/interactive/middle-east-and-africa...
	▲	dreamcompiler 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		I think regime change is likely to happen within two years. Just not in Iran.

▲ tbrake an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> What's the goal of the US/Iran war?

kneecaping china by cutting off a huge source of its oil imports. Russia will not be able to make up the difference.

▲ ApolloFortyNine 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Well at this point the goal is for Iran to stop randomly blowing up innocent cargo ships. Or firing missiles at airports and cities in retaliation.

[1] https://www.reuters.com/world/iran-war-live-us-says-iranian-...

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csbrooks 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

That sounds like it would be a return to the status quo.

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QuercusMax an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

If that's the goal then the US and Israel are doing their best to stop it from happening. Iran is responding to provocations. Stop provoking them, no more blown up ships.

	▲	lenerdenator an hour ago \| parent [-]
		Iran has shown a willingness to do these things through proxies regardless of anyone else before. Furthermore, if they want to deal with the US or Israel, then they should target American or Israeli assets. Not third party ships manned by citizens of neutral nations who just want to get to port and remit cash to their families back home.

▲ Varelion an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> What's the goal of the US/Iran war?

Distract from the Epstein files. If you think anything else you:

    1 - Haven't been paying attention since 2008.

    2 - Are giving the administration way too much undeserved credit.

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post-it an hour ago | parent [-]

I'm not sure anything is a distraction from the Epstein files. I don't think the administration cares about the Epstein files. What would be the fallout if they were all released? We already know that a lot of wealthy people were raping children. It's not like the US is going to prosecute.

	▲	fwip 30 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Depends on who's in it.

▲ mcphage 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> What's the goal of the US/Iran war?

What's the goal?! The US/Iran war has a ton of goals! Every day a new goal, each as improbable as the last.

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anjel 4 hours ago | parent [-]

As with Ukraine, it's a David and Goliath kind of conflict and in both conflicts, the temptation for Goliath to escalate by leveraging scale is predictable, tempting and frought.

	▲	malcolmgreaves an hour ago \| parent [-]
		Iran is not David in this case. They’ve shown that their drone warfare is just a little bit under what the US military can provide. Remember that they destroyed a quarter of a trillion dollars radar installation. And the US has spent billions on munitions. The US can’t actually keep going in this war.

▲ lenerdenator an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> What's the goal of the US/Iran war?

It varies. Which is the problem.

I can think of a few:

1) Severely kneecap the Iranians' nuclear ambitions. This one might actually be working to an extent.

2) Severely kneecap the Iranians' military ambitions in the Middle East as a whole, particularly with respect to Israel. This remains unknown. Their neighbors seem content to give them a pass for launching missiles into their infrastructure, possibly on the grounds of shared religion. Maybe they'll get tired of it.

3) Cause regime change in Iran. Not happening now. Might not happen in the foreseeable future.

▲ jandrese 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

The Trump administration forgot all of the lessons of Vietnam.

	▲	__s 4 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		If it weren't for those bone spurs maybe that war wouldn't be so forgotten
	▲	JBiserkov 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Maybe because they dogged it?

▲ pjc50 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

The goal is a very simple one: make Trump look good. It wouldn't be the first war in history to be driven by pure vanity of an absolute ruler.

	▲	isleyaardvark 3 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		It's to distract from the Epstein files.
	▲	salemh 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		[dead]

▲ mcphage 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> Iran will probably in a better place than they are now, strategically speaking

How could that be? Are they getting an influx of $300 billion dollars or something?

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xp84 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

It’s an odd declaration and maybe based on Rus/Ukraine. But Ukraine is doing better now than in the first week of the “Special Military Operation” due to having a lot of rich allies who have (in fits and starts) given them a lot of money and gear, and due to a Russia which has stretched its military and economy to the breaking point.

By contrast, Iran’s only allies are its terrorist affiliates in Lebanon, Gaza, and the Houthis. Those guys can’t do much to help. China and Russia (see above though) are willing to do business with them but don’t really give a crap about Iran surviving.

Anyway, the US and Israel can keep degrading Iran’s military and “government” by dropping bombs (or better, drones) on them every week for a decade and it won’t really be a big deal for the former. Iran though will not be better off for it, I’m pretty confident. (Other than their surviving religious fanatics will be even more suicidally devout.)

	▲	Someone an hour ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> Anyway, the US and Israel can keep degrading Iran’s military and “government” by dropping bombs (or better, drones) on them every week for a decade and it won’t really be a big deal for the former. Can they? https://www.csis.org/analysis/last-rounds-status-key-munitio... says “In the 39 days of the air and missile campaign before the ceasefire, U.S. forces heavily used the seven munitions in Table 1. For four of them, the United States may have expended more than half of the prewar inventory” According to that article, they expended ballpark a third of their inventory of expensive weapons systems such as Patriots or Tomahawk missiles, each with a production lead time of at least 3 years. If so, they would run out of those expensive weapons in three more months.
	▲	stevenwoo 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		It's sarcasm, a bit, because the last published deal revealed the USA was going to pay Iran 300 billion to end the shooting war that Israel and the USA started. https://www.npr.org/2026/06/23/nx-s1-5866577/iran-trump-deal...
	▲	pjc50 4 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		I believe the assessment is based on the desire of the US to offer concessions (such as sanctions withdrawal) in order to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Which will be painful in the medium term, but less so in the long run as oil is diverted around it.
	▲	general1465 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		> Anyway, the US and Israel can keep degrading Iran’s military and “government” by dropping bombs (or better, drones) on them every week for a decade and it won’t really be a big deal for the former. I disagree. The huge problem here is that USAF is showing how they are doing things over and over again. For China it is a treasure trove of data and ideal place for testing of their gear to detect and later shoot down US stealth aircraft which USA is constantly threating to use against China.

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jandrese 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

They'll be getting the Hormuz toll money.

▲ stronglikedan 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

lol, no. no comparison between those wars

▲ kcatskcolbdi 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It's hard to imagine them in a better place; they seem to have us by the balls already.

▲ anjel 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

History reveals that every war is won by the nation with superior industrial capacity.

	▲	cliglot 3 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> History reveals that every war is won by the nation with superior industrial capacity. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chichimeca_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet–Afghan_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_War https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Afghanistan_(2001–2021) You’d be pretty hard pressed to refer the victor of any of these wars as having “superior industrial capacity” compared to their opponents.
	▲	tclancy 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Is this some kind of subtle gag?