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Trump Says He Is 'Nowhere Near' Deploying Ground Forces in Operation Epic Fury

Dmitri Bolt
Dmitri Bolt  |  March 09, 2026 1:45 PM

President Trump revealed on Monday that he is "nowhere near" putting boots on the ground in Iran, as Operation Epic Fury enters its second week and continues to be a stunning success in American military prowess.

“We haven’t made any decision on that. We’re nowhere near it,” the president told the New York Post, adding that he is “not happy with” Iran’s replacement for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was chosen for the position. 

When asked about his plans for dealing with the new Ayatollah, he replied: “Not going to tell you. I’m not happy with him.”

This comes as U.S. and Israeli forces continue battering Iranian capabilities, nearly destroying the country’s navy, eliminating more than 50 senior officials, including Ayatollah Khamenei, and targeting missile systems used to strike more than a dozen countries across the region, some hosting American bases. Many of those attacks hit civilian infrastructure, drawing official responses from countries including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

The United States does, however, have potential access to ground forces through Iraqi Kurdish fighters, who have thousands of troops positioned inside Iran, though the extent of any coordination with the U.S. military remains unclear.

Still, the need for ground forces appears unlikely. Iran has received little beyond moral support from its allies, including Russia and China, and the Trump administration has signaled it expects the conflict to conclude within weeks.