Ground forces arrive in the Middle East; U.S. military commander issues open letter: Prepare for combat

The signal that Trump is determined to launch a ground war has become extremely clear.

According to news from the U.S. Naval Institute website, on the 28th, the U.S. Central Command officially announced that the amphibious ready group "Tripoli" has arrived in the area of responsibility of the Central Command. This formation carries 3,500 U.S. Navy sailors and Marines.

At the same time, another U.S. amphibious ready group, the "Boxer," also arrived in Hawaii — although earlier American media reported that the "Boxer's" final destination was also the Middle East, since the U.S. Central Command has not confirmed this claim so far, it remains uncertain whether the "Boxer" is preparing to fill the gap left by the "Tripoli" in U.S. military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, or if it truly intends to head to the Middle East.

Back to the main point. With the arrival of the "Tripoli" in the Middle East, an open letter signed by Leonard Anderson, the commanding general of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, urging Marines to prepare for combat has recently appeared online across the United States. The letter is widely regarded as a signal that ground operations are about to begin.

Another noteworthy development is that the units deployed this time, such as the Marine Corps and the 82nd Airborne Division, are traditionally known for their mobility and rapid deployment capabilities, but they have relatively limited heavy ground equipment. Particularly, the Marine Corps has, in recent years, phased out tanks and other heavy weapons as part of its transition toward the "distributed operations" concept.

This means that once ground combat begins, the U.S. will deploy several light forces highly dependent on air and naval fire support. How long these light units can hold their positions under Iran’s “small motorcycle” attacks, and whether they can successfully advance to small islands near Iranian shores, will largely depend on whether timely and effective fire support can be delivered from behind the lines.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1860982189105287/

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