The former head of US Central Command said Sunday that the American-Israeli campaign against Iran is outpacing projections drawn from years of military war-gaming, expressing confidence that Tehran will ultimately agree to terms.

Retired Gen. Frank McKenzie, who led Central Command under both Presidents Trump and Biden, told CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the operation has exceeded the benchmarks established through repeated simulations of a potential Iran conflict.

“I’ve simulated this for many years in many positions at Central Command,” McKenzie said. “We’re a little further along than we would have expected to be at this point in all the simulations that I’ve seen.”

McKenzie said the current phase of the campaign is focused on systematically degrading Iran’s missile and drone capabilities across southern Iran, with the goal of breaking Tehran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz. Iran closed the critical waterway in response to the US-Israeli assault, triggering fuel shortages and price spikes worldwide.

“What we’re doing right now is we’re reducing Iranian ability to target ships in the strait through their short-range missiles, their drones and other activities,” McKenzie said. “We do that by maintaining air superiority over southern Iran on a 24/7 basis, looking for where these missiles are and striking them relentlessly.”

Once those capabilities are sufficiently degraded, McKenzie said, forces could move in to clear Iranian mines from the strait if needed.

The retired general also pointed to Kharg Island — home to the bulk of Iran’s oil production infrastructure — as a potential pressure point. “If you seize Kharg Island, you really can shut down the Iranian oil economy completely,” he said.

Despite the optimistic military assessment, Iran has continued to resist direct negotiations, with its leadership demanding compensation for war damages. With the conflict entering its second month, the Trump administration is reportedly targeting a mid-April timeline for completing major operations, a timeline that could involve the deployment of ground forces inside Iran, according to the Wall Street Journal.

President Trump has outlined several objectives for the campaign, including the dismantlement of Iran’s nuclear program and the destruction of its regional proxy network.

“I believe that they will break,” McKenzie said. “I believe that they will come to terms.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)