{"id":81230,"date":"2026-05-14T19:57:59","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T19:57:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2026\/05\/14\/iran-military-threat-is-diminished-but-not-eliminated-centcom-chief-says\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T17:40:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T17:40:03","slug":"iran-military-threat-is-diminished-but-not-eliminated-centcom-chief-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2026\/05\/14\/iran-military-threat-is-diminished-but-not-eliminated-centcom-chief-says\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran military threat is diminished but not eliminated, CENTCOM chief says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

America\u2019s 38-day bombing campaign against Iran has diminished the Islamic Republic\u2019s ability to threaten global security,<\/a> but has not yet eliminated the threat altogether, Adm. Brad Cooper, the chief of Central Command, told lawmakers on Thursday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very large country,\u201d Cooper testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. He acknowledged that Iran still possessed \u201ca very moderate, if not small, capability\u201d to conduct strikes on regional neighbors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington and Tehran remain locked in a month-long stalemate in the Strait of Hormuz, with no clear path forward as both sides have rejected proposed off-ramps from the crisis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Initially, Iran retaliated for the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on its territory by throttling traffic in the waterway \u2014 where roughly one-fifth of the world\u2019s oil typically flows. The Iranians accomplished this in part through the mere threat of naval mine warfare, though some vessels were also attacked. The United States, in turn, imposed a blockade on all vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Iranian capability to stop commerce has been dramatically degraded through the straits,\u201d the CENTCOM commander said. \u201cBut their voice is very loud, and those threats are clearly heard by the merchant industry and the insurance industry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cooper \u2014 who did not address how the impasse in the strait might be resolved \u2014 asserted that U.S. forces had severely degraded Iran\u2019s warfighting capacity, including the elimination of roughly 90% of its inventory of more than 8,000 naval mines<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also declared that U.S. forces had \u201cmet every military objective\u201d under Operation Epic Fury, citing the destruction of 90% of Iran\u2019s defense industrial base.<\/p>\n\n\n\t