Wasington DC [US], May 30 (ANI): Retired US Army Colonel and geopolitical risk advisor Douglas Macgregor argued that US President Donald Trump faces a major political dilemma over continued US involvement in West Asia, claiming that influential pro-Israel interests in the United States could turn against him if he seeks to halt military operations in the Persian Gulf.

Speaking to ANI, Macgregor said that most Americans are largely uninterested in developments in the Persian Gulf and would support an immediate end to military operations if Trump chose to pursue one.

'Given that, keep in mind that the vast majority of Americans really are not interested in what's happening in the Persian Gulf,' Macgregor said, adding that public attention could grow if the economic consequences of regional instability begin affecting the United States.

He warned of potential energy-related challenges, citing concerns raised by the oil and gas sector. According to Macgregor, some analysts have suggested that the United States could face serious difficulties if disruptions continue and strategic reserves come under pressure.

'We can talk a little bit about that because we've had very prominent people in the oil and gas sector tell us flat out, depending upon who you want to listen to, the executive vice president of Exxon or any number of oil and financial analysts, say that somewhere between three weeks. And eight weeks from now, the strategic petroleum reserve is exhausted, and we're in serious trouble here in the United States. And nobody bothered to point out to President Trump, for instance, that California is very dependent on imported oil from the Persian Gulf. So now we've discovered all those things,' he said.

MacGregor argued that Trump could easily justify ending military operations by emphasising the need to restore stability and commercial traffic through the Persian Gulf.

'So, for President Trump, it's not really as big a problem as you may think, he said.

He added, 'If President Trump went public tomorrow morning and said, 'It makes no sense to continue this. All of our friends in Asia, all of our friends in the Middle East, all of our friends in Africa and Europe have all said the same thing. So I'm suspending these military operations immediately. The most important thing is to resume traffic through the Persian Gulf. The most important thing is to resume traffic through the Persian Gulf,' everybody would say, 'Fine, not a problem. Thanks very much,' and go on with their lives.'

However, Macgregor contended that Israel and its supporters would strongly oppose such a move. He claimed that wealthy and influential pro-Israel figures in the United States could threaten to withdraw political backing from Trump if he abandoned support for Israel's military objectives.

'Israel's agents in the United States who are billionaires and who represent enormous quantities of money are in a position to tell the president, 'If you do this, we will no longer support you,'' MacGregor said.

MacGregor further claimed that Netanyahu views the conflict through a different strategic lens, arguing that the Israeli leader seeks to continue pressure on Iran and demonstrate the consequences of opposing Israel.

'He (Trump) is trying to make the argument to Netanyahu that he should come along. But Mr Netanyahu's calculus is completely unrelated to Trump's. He sees himself in a unique position. He has absolute power right now over the United States armed forces and the policymaking machinery in Washington. Why would he give that up? No, what he wants is a resumption of the war. He wants to press this war with the goal of destroying Iran. He wants to make Iran an object lesson for everyone in the region,' Macgregor said.

Describing Trump's 'real dilemma', Macgregor suggested that the president must decide whether he can distance himself from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's strategic objectives.

'That's President Trump's real dilemma. Can he divorce himself and simply say, 'That's it, I've gone as far as I can, this must stop?' Thus far, we've seen no evidence that he can do that,' he stated. (ANI)