WASHINGTON, April 10. /TASS/. The US-Israeli operation against Iran turned into a war of attrition that the United States can’t win, University of Chicago Professor John Mearsheimer said.
"In the case of Iran, we're now in a war of attrition. And the fact is, we can't win a war of attrition. It's just not possible," he pointed out at a conference hosted by the Washington-based Arab Center. "There's no exit option here except admitting defeat. That's the only way Trump can get out of this, is to basically admit defeat," the expert added.
According to him, "this all raises the serious possibility that somewhere down the road, the Israelis will use nuclear weapons against Iran." "Their greatest fear is that Iran will acquire nuclear weapons. And I think if the Israelis even suspect that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons, that they will use nuclear weapons to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear deterrent, because it's now clear that Israel cannot prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons using its own conventional forces. It doesn't work. The only option they have is nuclear weapons. And I believe the Israelis would use nuclear weapons in that situation," Mearsheimer noted.
"You might say to yourself: 'Well, the United States would stop that from happening.' The United States will not stop that from happening," he added.
On April 7, US President Donald Trump announced a "double-sided" two-week ceasefire with Iran. The US leader said the decision was subject to Iran agreeing to the opening of the Strait of Hormuz. According to Trump, Iran’s 10-point proposal is "a workable basis on which to negotiate." Tehran, in turn, agreed to cease retaliatory strikes if it was no longer attacked. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has acted as a mediator between the parties, invited them to visit Islamabad on April 10 for talks.