Congress wants to see the Pentagon’s hidden costs of deterring Iran
Congress wants the Defense Department to regularly report on the costs required to deter Tehran's ambitions in the Middle East.
As US-led wars against the Islamic State (IS) and the Taliban wind down, the head of US Central Command (CENTCOM) appears to be signaling that he prefers to leave troops in the Middle East to deter Iran — and now Congress wants to know how much it will cost.
House lawmakers have included a provision in their version of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act that would require the Defense Department to regularly report on the military’s hidden price tag of warding off Tehran’s ambitions in the region.
