Lebanese Armed ForcesMcKenzie supports continued funding for the Lebanese Armed Forces. Recent months have seen tensions in Lebanon. In one case, Lebanese soldiers appeared to point an RPG at an Israeli tank. UN forces called UNIFIL want more vehicles for mobility to patrol the border.Hezbollah also cut holes in the security fence earlier this year. McKenzie indicated he did not think Hezbollah in Lebanon “answers immediately when Iran calls,” according to a tweet by Jeff Seldin.The US continues to support the Lebanese Armed Forces despite Hezbollah’s growing role in Lebanon. It is an imperfect choice, the general indicated.AfghanistanThe US could withdraw from Afghanistan by May 2021, McKenzie said. But that depends on the Taliban and some conditions that need to be met. While the Taliban may not be meeting ceasefire conditions or conditions for a US withdrawal, the main US concern is not the Taliban but the ungoverned spaces or weakness of the state. That would mean if the Taliban increases control, then other bad actors will come into the vacuum. That in the past meant al-Qaeda. Now it could mean ISIS or Iranian-backed groups or new groups.CoronavirusCoronavirus has been a threat to the region, and US forces have had to stop movements or reposition themselves in some cases. The pandemic also may have slowed the tempo of Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah, McKenzie said. The US has carried out airstrikes on the group to deter it from further rocket attacks that have killed US-led coalition forces.The Taliban have also suffered from the pandemic. Iran has sought to make sure its forces are not affected, according to comments at the session.SyriaThe Syrian regime has been pressuring Syrian rebel groups in Idlib. But it could turn its attention to focusing on US-backed groups in eastern Syria or on the US base at al-Tanf. The US would deal with whatever might happen in the area of Deir Ezzor, McKenzie said. In 2018, Russian contractors working with the Syrian regime attacked the US-backed SDF in this area and were beaten back. The message was that the US would beat the regime back again. The US has downed a regime plane and carried out airstrikes on the Syrian regime in the past.The US won’t remain in Syria forever, the general said. “I do not know how long we are going to remain,” he added.DronesSmall drone swarms are a concern for the US. There are many cheap drones available, McKenzie said, adding that he was worried about the ability to “protect against swarms of those aircraft.” Drones have proliferated throughout the region, and Iran has developed numerous new drone models and used them to attack Saudi Arabia.New conflicts in Syria and Libya have also seen numerous drones used and shot down. “At an operational level, that’s a worrisome thing,” McKenzie said about drone swarms. “It’s not a new form of warfare, but it’s a new component.”YemenIran has no interest in ending the war. McKenzie mentioned the possibility of trying to reduce Iran’s patronage for the Houthis. In the last year, US naval ships have intercepted at least two dhows moving weapons to Yemen.A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has been fighting the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen since 2015. The war is a “bleeding ulcer,” McKenzie said. The Saudis want it resolved, but Iran does not, seemed to be the point he was making..@CENTCOM's Gen. McKenzie: China seeks, "principally economically, to establish a beachhead" in the Middle East to stage for future activities. Says he believes U.S. arms sales are among the best ways to keep countries there from turning to relations with China and Russia.
— Paul D. Shinkman (@PDShinkman) June 10, 2020