Professor Jiang Predicts US Will Send Ground Troops to Iran by December or March

In the latest episode of Piers Morgan Uncensored on Tuesday (30/6), two experts from different backgrounds, Professor Jiang Xueqin, a game theory expert, and Andrew Bustamante, a former CIA undercover officer, provided sharp analysis on the development of the conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran. The discussion highlighted whether this war would end with diplomacy or greater military escalation. Professor Jiang maintained his prediction that the United States would ultimately be forced to send ground troops, or boots on the ground, to Iran. According to him, although Donald Trump currently appears hesitant, the US is trapped in a situation where withdrawal would hand full control of the Middle East to Iran. Jiang predicted that ground troop involvement could occur as early as December or as late as next March. He argued that the US is currently just biding its time because the hot weather conditions in Iran do not permit a ground invasion. “There are 660,000 American soldiers ready to deploy. The existing MOU is just a way to buy time,” Jiang claimed. In contrast, Andrew Bustamante disagreed with that view. He assessed that Trump is merely seeking a quick and short political victory. According to Bustamante, sending ground troops would be too heavy a political, military, and legislative burden for the Trump administration, especially if the composition of Congress changes after the midterm elections. Bustamante highlighted what he called a fundamental intelligence failure. He criticised the US’s reliance on Israeli intelligence infrastructure to assess the situation in Iran. “We are going into Iran essentially following Israel’s guidance, following their target package, rather than our own independent intelligence assessment,” Bustamante said. He likened the US position to a pitbull chained by someone else. The failure of Israeli predictions regarding the internal collapse of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) after the killing of its top leaders was proof that the assessment was inaccurate. The discussion also touched on Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Professor Jiang argued that Iran does not actually want to build nuclear weapons because of a religious fatwa. However, he quoted an MIT expert who stated that Iran only needs six weeks to build one if it has the will. Bustamante, however, argued that Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz is far more effective than any nuclear deterrent. By controlling the passage through which 20 per cent of the world’s energy flows, Iran is capable of holding the global economy hostage. Professor Jiang put forward a controversial view regarding the motives behind Israel’s actions. He suspected there are radical elements within the Israeli government who wish to realise the Greater Israel project stretching from the Nile to the Euphrates. This, according to him, explains why Israel appears to be provoking conflict on various fronts, including threats against Turkey and Egypt. Piers Morgan closed the discussion by noting that Israel’s popularity in the eyes of the world continues to decline due to extreme statements from cabinet members such as Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, who openly call for harsh actions in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip without regard for international law or proportionality.