Five months into the Iran war and there is still no strategy. None. Laurie A. Watkins joins Katie Pavlich on NewsNation to lay out exactly what has, and hasn’t, been accomplished since the war began on February 28, 2026. Key points covered in this segment:
→ Iran’s nuclear capability has NOT been destroyed, despite early claims
→ Iran still controls the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping chokepoint
→ Iran retains the ability to strike US military installations and allied forces, and has repeatedly done so
→ 18 US service members have been killed in connection with the war
→ Iran used ceasefire periods to reconstitute rather than de-escalate
→ US munitions stockpiles are severely depleted: roughly half of Tomahawk missiles and nearly 80% of THAAD interceptors used, with years needed to rebuild
→ The June 2026 ceasefire agreement releases billions in frozen Iranian assets, a major policy reversal
→ The prolonged conflict continues straining the global economy with no clear US exit strategy Laurie A. Watkins is a US public policy expert and former Pentagon official, drawing on her background in active duty military policy to explain where US strategy in the Middle East stands, and where it’s falling apart.