Washington, D.C., Feb 26 (NationPress) Senator Mark Warner on Thursday urged President Donald Trump to clarify if the United States is on the verge of entering a long-term conflict with Iran. He expressed concerns that American troops could soon face danger without a well-defined mission.

As the Chairman of the influential Senate Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Warner informed reporters that he was briefed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio as part of a meeting with the 'Gang of Eight' earlier this week, particularly in light of what he termed a "significant buildup of military forces in the Eastern Mediterranean, near Iran, and in other locations."

“The essential question is, are we heading towards war?” he asked, asserting, “It is the responsibility of the President to communicate to the American populace if he intends to deploy our troops into what is acknowledged by the administration as a likely prolonged conflict with Iran.”

Warner warned that any future military engagement would be vastly different from past limited strikes. “This would not resemble the rapid strike that eliminated Maduro or the singular attack on Iran's nuclear sites,” he noted, emphasizing that, should the operation proceed, it “could lead to much more extensive ramifications.”

In response to inquiries regarding Iran’s nuclear capabilities, Warner stated, “They were never completely destroyed; the president was mistaken. The airstrike did not have the capability to fully eradicate Iran's nuclear abilities.”

He further mentioned that while the previous airstrike was “highly effective,” it “failed to eliminate Iran's nuclear capabilities.” Warner also criticized the dismissal of a senior intelligence official, claiming General Kraus “was terminated for speaking the truth.”

Regarding military intervention, Warner insisted that Congress must be formally involved. “If we are on the brink of ongoing conflict with Iran, we need to invoke the War Powers Act,” he stated.

“The president is obligated to come to Congress and explain to us, and more importantly, to the American people, what his objectives are and why it is in the best interest of America to engage in this conflict.”

Warner expressed worries that the administration might be expanding its goals beyond nuclear concerns.

“If we are shifting from preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear arms to insisting that Iran should not possess any missile capabilities whatsoever, that represents a different argument, and I am uncertain if that case has been sufficiently made.”

He characterized the Iranian regime as “terrible” and a “proponent of anti-Western and anti-American rhetoric,” yet maintained that if U.S. troops are to be deployed “in harm's way, the president must articulate his goals, motivations, and why this is in the American interest.”