MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
All right, staying with the Iran news, we wanted to get a military perspective on today's events. And for that, we have called Robert Harward, retired vice admiral, former U.S. Navy Seal, also former deputy CENTCOM commander - U.S. Central Command. He's now a member of the Iran Policy Project at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America. Admiral Harward, thank you for joining us.
ROBERT HARWARD: Good to be with you, Mary Louise.
KELLY: Now, we have reached you tonight in Abu Dhabi, capital of the UAE. Iran launched a retaliatory strike there earlier today. The UAE says at least one person was killed by shrapnel. So let me begin by asking, were you able to see anything, hear anything where you are?
HARWARD: Yeah, we hear some of the explosions. We've heard a couple of the Patriots, I believe, go off. A lot of my friends have called me. Some have sent me pictures of shrapnel, video of a strike on the Palm, so it's going on about us. But where I'm at, the center of town, no impact here.
KELLY: Good. Well, I'm glad you're safe. Let me turn you to the goal of this operation and what we know of it, what we are learning about it because, as you know, there were a lot of questions about whether one of the goals was regime change. We seem now to have an answer to that. What stands out to you about the way that the strike on Supreme Leader Khamenei was carried out?
HARWARD: I thought - was brilliant, you know, not dissimilar to the strike on Qasem Soleimani when he was in Iraq. So I think it indicates at the top how precise our weapons are, how good our intelligence are. And that's a strong signal to the rest of the leadership, specifically the IRGC. And I think if we go through another day of this, they're going to start focusing on survival, much more so than they are projecting power. And with their communications really dismantled, it makes it very challenging for those in the field who are supposed to be conducting and launching missiles to understand if the regime's intact and if they need to focus on their own survival. So I think this could unfold very quickly.
KELLY: Any thoughts, Admiral, on the division of labor, on who would hit what? There's still a lot we don't know, but it seems to be becoming clear that this was an Israeli strike, not an American strike, that targeted Khamenei.
HARWARD: Well, I think it's very clear not only in the military offensive capability, but also intelligence, that we're tied together with Israel. We're working in a coordinated, synchronized fashion to realize the best and the most of our capacity and our capabilities. And I think, more importantly, that's going to play out on the intelligence on the ground and what comes next and how this transition happens.
KELLY: Say more about the intelligence on the ground. Is your understanding that U.S. intelligence would have been helping to inform Israel's actions?
HARWARD: Vice versa. I think it's a two-way street. Both had their own networks, their own systems. I think they've synchronized them and are working collectively to go through that to not only maximize the targeting, but also the messaging to the salvageable parts of the Iranian government - be it the Artesh - that, hey, here's a chance for you guys to turn on the IRGC and be part of the future of Iran. So I have to believe that all those efforts are ongoing as we speak and would help accelerate a very minimal blood as we work towards this transition.
KELLY: Let me turn you to Iran's response. Iran launched missiles today at Israel - also at UAE, as we mentioned, where you are, also Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain. There's a whole list. How vulnerable are U.S. assets, U.S. personnel in the region?
HARWARD: I think they are, but there's a couple things. We have incredible integrated air defense not only in our systems, what - but with our partners. So I think that pays dividends. Our ability to interfere, detract on their communications also helps. But more importantly, most of their systems do not have the accuracy of our weapon system. So some of it - they're shooting in the dark or shooting for effect as opposed to accuracy. So the - I think on their broad range of missiles and assets, some of them are accurate. Many are not. So I think all of those things play into our advantage.
KELLY: Although, you will have heard President Trump speaking today from Mar-a-Lago, he seemed to be preparing Americans for the possibility of American casualties.
HARWARD: Well, of course, you have to, but I think that risk pales in comparison the American casualties we've suffered since this regime came to power. And if - without this action, that only would have continued. So I applaud the administration for finally holding this regime accountable, not for the - not at risk - or those who remain at risk, but for those they've already killed. So this is accountability at the end of the day.
KELLY: What about the Pottery Barn rule? Going back to Colin Powell, when he was chairman of the joint chiefs - if you break something, you own it. If we and the - if the U.S. and Israel have taken out Iran's supreme leader, how much responsibility do we have in that country going forward?
HARWARD: I think - listen, we've already received that signal from the Iranian people. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, went to the street, and they were slaughtered. We think 20- to 30,000 people in a couple of weeks. So they want that ownership. They want that accountability, and we're providing that opportunity. I think the president made that very clear.
KELLY: We have less than a minute left, Admiral, but I do want to note, you grew up partly at Iran. You speak Farsi. You went to high school there. You must know people personally affected by today's events.
HARWARD: Of course, and I'm in contact with some of them. I went to the Naval Academy. We had Iranian students in my class. I'm talking to them, and they're applauding. They want to know how they can help, how they want to be part of this future. So again, every Iranian I've known, I've come in contact - all I'm hearing is a great salute to America and how grateful they are, and they want to be part of the solution. So I think that's how we can support.
KELLY: That is retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward speaking to us from Abu Dhabi, one of the many voices we are hearing from today on events unfolding in the Middle East. Admiral, thank you.
HARWARD: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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