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MBS privately urging Trump to keep fighting, topple Iranian regime and deploy US boots on ground — NYT

·Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been privately urging Trump to continue the war until the Iranian regime is toppled, and to put US boots on the ground, the New York Times reports citing US officials. MBS has spoken to Trump several times over the past week. Publicly, Riyadh backs a diplomatic solution — the private position is starkly different.

The New York Times reported, citing people briefed by American officials, that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been privately urging US President Trump to continue the war against Iran, push for regime change, and deploy US ground troops. MBS has spoken to Trump several times over the past week with this message. The Crown Prince sees Iran as a long-term existential threat that will persist as long as the Islamic Republic exists, and fears that a failed Iranian state with military factions continuing to strike the kingdom could be even worse. Publicly, Riyadh — which has been hit by numerous Iranian drone and missile attacks — says it wants a diplomatic solution. The private pressure represents the starkest divergence yet between Saudi Arabia's public and private positions. Saudi Arabia has already granted US access to King Fahd Air Base, and these revelations suggest that the kingdom's coordination with Washington is more aggressive than its public posture implies. MBS's push for US boots on the ground is particularly significant given Trump's stated reluctance to deploy ground forces in a new Middle East conflict.
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Actor responses

United StatesNEUTRALDIPLOMATIC

Trump has received multiple private calls from MBS urging continued war and regime change in Iran. US officials briefed NYT on the conversations. Trump has been publicly ambivalent about a negotiated deal vs. continued military pressure — MBS is firmly in the war camp.

IranOPPOSINGDIPLOMATIC

MBS is privately pushing for Iranian regime change and US boots on the ground — the opposite of Saudi Arabia's public diplomatic stance. The revelation confirms that Saudi Arabia is coordinating more aggressively with Washington than public statements suggest.

IsraelSUPPORTINGDIPLOMATIC

MBS's private position — continue the war, topple the regime, deploy US ground forces — aligns with Israeli war aims and Israeli officials' skepticism about a premature ceasefire deal with Iran.

Sources

T1New York Times9% reliability