U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth declared that Washington intends to keep Iran guessing about its next military moves in the ongoing conflict against the Persian nation.

In an interview with the program 60 Minutes, the senior official affirmed that the administration of President Donald Trump will not share its military plans or next steps with anyone. "The president [Donald Trump] knows, I know. You don't tell the enemy the plan. You don't tell the press. You don't tell anyone what your limits would be in an operation," he stated.

"We are prepared to go as far as it takes to succeed. We want the Iranians to remain on edge, to doubt, to turn over again and again what we might be willing to do — because under President Trump, we just might do it, and they have to take that into account," he emphasized.

Hegseth also indicated that the United States reserves the right to deploy forces inside the Islamic Republic, though he reiterated that no such deployment is currently in place. "We reserve the right — and it would be completely imprudent if we did not reserve the right — to opt for a particular course of action, whether or not it includes troops on the ground," he added.

Israel and the United States launched a joint strike operation in the early hours of Saturday, February 28, with the stated objective of eliminating what they described as threats posed by the Islamic Republic of Iran. The attacks resulted in the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with several senior military officials. In response, Tehran launched multiple waves of ballistic missiles targeting Israel and U.S. military installations across the Middle East.