The U.S. Central Command chief has told a Senate panel that the central region faces its most volatile security situation in the past half century.
Just a year ago the U.S. Central Command area was on the verge of “improbable, unprecedented and transformative progress. Today, the central region faces its most volatile security situation in the past half century. This is not the same central region as last year,” said Gen. Michael E. Kurilla, commander of Centcom.
He was testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee about the fiscal year 2025 defense authorization request and the future years defense program.
“The convergence of crisis and competition make [the Centcom area of responsibility] the most likely region to produce threats against the U.S. homeland, trigger a regional conflict and derail the national defense strategy,” he said.
The situation in Gaza has created the conditions for malign actors to sow instability throughout the region and beyond, he said.
Iran exploited what they saw as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape the Middle East to its advantage, using its proxies in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, the West Bank and Yemen, he added.
“Iran knows that its decade-long vision cannot be realized if countries in the region continue to expand integration with each other and deepen their partnership with the United States,” he said.
Iran has also developed a full-scale production pipeline for supplying weapons to Russia, fueling its war on Ukraine.
The risk of attack emanating from Afghanistan is increasing, he said.
“I assess ISIS-Khorasan retains the capability and will to attack U.S. and Western interests abroad in as little as six months and with little to no warning,” Kurilla said.
The Centcom region remains critical to the world’s energy supply and remains essential for the flow of global commerce, he said.
Centcom provides strategic depth to the defense of the U.S. homeland, he said. “American security and prosperity are at risk if we cede this space to Iran, terrorism and China.”
Kurilla said the U.S. should remain continuously engaged throughout the region with its partners.
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