WASHINGTON, March 3. /TASS/. The United States attempted to establish contacts with some members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ahead of the operation in Iran to determine whether forces willing to cooperate could come to power, Politico reported, citing sources.
"There’s no coordinated or breakaway group inside the regime that the Americans view as a new government they would welcome, or any real organized opposition," one of the sources told the newspaper. In addition, the United States’ partners never received a clear set of objectives for the operation. According to an unnamed Western diplomat, Washington has so far "failed to spell out a long-term plan for Iran and the region."
The United States and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran.
As a result of the strikes, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several other senior figures in the leadership of the Islamic Republic were killed.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia were also hit.