A hawkish general known as ‘the Gorilla’ is emerging as Hegseth’s key decision-maker on Iran

18 June, 2025 | Filed under: All News,more news,RECENT POSTS | Posted by:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has given an unusual level of authority to a single general in the latest Middle East crisis — an Iran hawk who is pushing for a strong military response against the country..

Then-Lt. Gen. Michael E. Kurilla testifies during a Senate committee Then Lt. Gen. Michael E. Kurilla testifies to the Senate Armed Services Committee on March 16, 2023. | Mariam Zuhaib/AP

U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Erik Kurilla has played an outsized role in the escalating clashes between Tehran and Israel, with officials noting nearly all his requests have been approved, from more aircraft carriers to fighter planes in the region.

The pugnacious general, who is known as “The Gorilla,” is overruling other top Pentagon officials and playing a quiet but decisive role in the country’s next steps on Iran, according to a former and current defense official, a diplomat, and a person familiar with the dynamic.

Hegseth’s apparent deference to Kurilla undermines the image the Pentagon chief has sought to project of a tough-talking leader who has vowed to reduce the influence of four-star generals and reassert civilian control.

“If the senior military guys come across as tough and warfighters, Hegseth is easily persuaded to their point of view,” said the former official. Kurilla “has been very good at getting what he wants.”

The longtime military official — who is close with Mike Waltz, the former national security adviser and nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations — has had more face time with the president than most other generals, according to one of the people, who, like others, was granted anonymity to discuss internal conversations. Kurilla is also at the end of his tenure leading U.S. Central Command, meaning he may be less fearful about pushing the president.

Kurilla’s arguments to send more U.S. weapons to the region, including air defenses, have gone against Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, who have urged caution in overcommitting to the Middle East, according to the four people.

“CENTCOM is trying to grab every asset they can from every other theater,” the person familiar said, using an acronym to describe the Pentagon’s top military command in the Middle East, which Kurilla leads. “That’s what CENTCOM always does.”

CENTCOM referred questions to Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, who said the Defense secretary draws on officials’ knowledge and then makes a decision about what to recommend to the president.

“Secretary Hegseth empowers all of his combatant commanders the same way, by decentralizing command and harnessing their real-world expertise,” he said. “Our senior leaders are in lockstep and will continue to work in unison to deliver on President Trump‘s national security agenda.”

Another defense official disputed the notion that Caine, the military’s top official, was at odds with the general on major decisions.

“Absolutely no daylight between Kurilla and Caine,” said the official, who said that both commanders present options jointly to Trump. “It’s a hand in glove relationship.”

Kurilla has an influence unseen in other administrations. Top generals are usually reined in by Pentagon chiefs, who push back on their requests to balance the global U.S. troop presence. But one of the people familiar with the dynamic between the CENTCOM commander and the Pentagon chief said they never saw Hegseth turn down a single one of Kurilla’s requests for more military assets.

The Pentagon steered a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East this week, two defense officials said, as well as new deployments of F-22, F-35 and F-16 fighter planes. This gives the U.S. two aircraft carriers in the region for the second time this year, a rare move. It also takes them from the Pacific, a signal that the Middle East is once again a priority for the administration, even as Pentagon leaders have sought to focus their efforts on China.

Kurilla, testifying on Capitol Hill last week, said he had prepared a “wide range of options” for Hegseth and President Donald Trump to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

The White House has backed the military buildup in the region, although some officials noted how easy it’s been for Kurilla to make the case for why he needs more planes, ships and air defenses.

“He’s not worried about taking that directly to his civilian superiors,” said the diplomat. “Hegseth has sided with him time and again.”

Some former officials contend Kurilla’s influence is tied more to the nature of his job, the head of the combatant command overseeing the Middle East at a time of crisis.

“This has little to do with Kurilla himself,” said Bilal Saab, who served in the Pentagon during the first Trump administration. “There’s no resistance in the Pentagon or the NSC to moving assets to protect troops and personnel in the region.”

Despite his sometimes abrasive character — including the alleged shoving of a military crew member that prompted an Army investigation — the battle-tested and media-averse Kurilla has impressed top officials for his courage. He won a Bronze Star for leading U.S. troops in a firefight in 2005 at the height of the Iraq War despite having been shot three times. (CENTCOM said at the time that officials weren’t aware of any investigation into Kurilla.)

“He’s got the look of the general that both Hegseth and Trump are looking for,” said the former official. “He’s a big dude, he’s jacked, he’s exactly this ‘lethality’ look they’re going for.”

Officials who have participated in talks with Kurilla about military assets in the region said he also has a knack for convincing others about their importance.

“He’s extremely strategic and persuasive about what CENTCOM can do given adequate resources,” said Dan Shapiro, who until January was the Pentagon’s top Middle East policy official. “That was certainly true in the Biden administration. It may be more true now.”

John Sakellariadis contributed to this report.

Source:politico.com