With the escalation in tensions between the US and Iran, following the death of US citizens in Iran, followed by Americas retaliation, in killing a number of Iranian military, what will happen next ?

As with most conflicts in the middle east, this has the potential to escalate very quickly and to drag the UK in as well, particularly as we will very soon be negotiating with the US on a trade deal and Trump will very likely insist that we pick a side as a pre cursor to that.

Will this all blow away quickly or is this the start of something much more significant ?

Happy New Year !

Hopefully stay out of it so we can give the Iranians some moral support.

HNY

What give the Iranians moral support - are you serious?

I am not for one minute saying we should get involved but Soleimani got what was coming his way - an out an out terrorist who would stop at nothing. The world is a better place without him.

I appreciate Donald needs some diversion and this will fit well with his mid America flag wavers.

Storm in a teacup - the Iranians can't afford to react, could be it was the Ayatollah's idea?

Donald Trump has an election to win, sadly going to war will have a positive influence on his campaign, Trump knows this and is looking to start a war.

Agree with the first - not sure he really wants to go to war - Trump is bully not a fighter.

It wont be his blood that is spilt, just that of "his" people.
The declaration that this is "an act of war" doesn't sound great and in the final analysis, this will all boil down to the price and supply of oil

Trump isn't going to be up for a 'boots on the ground' style war in Iran, which would be much harder and more complex than Afghanistan and Iraq in which the US got bogged down for years.

He will want this kind of one-off strike conflict. The Iranians will react the same way, probably via proxy terrorist groups. This will be good politics for Trump because it takes the terms of debate on to something that he will fancy his chances against the Democrats - who would be tougher on Islamic terrorism.

The US intelligence services could always throw in a bit of fabrication, a bit of wishful thinking, and some outright lies that would allow them to go running to the United Nations Security Council.
Worked well enough last time.

I wonder how many people who support this kind of US imperialism will be down the recruiting office today? Very few I'd wager - it works much better to let the children of poor families die in a desert somewhere; small price to pay for the boost it will give an election campaign.

Nothing to do with the 53million barrels of oil that Iran have just found under their feet then?

Correlation does not = causation; so I'm certain that the US interventions in various middle and near eastern states are nothing at all to do with oil; [url=https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/01/06/america-escalates-its-democratic-oil-war-in-the-near-east/that would be outrageous.[/url

Yeah, nothing in the Middle East is ever remotely connected to oil



The real concern is that, I dont remember troops being sent en masse, halfway round the world, to not get involved in conflict and just as we (the UK) have been dragged in before, we will most likely get dragged into this one.
Killing the Iranian military leader is one hell of a gamble and as you suggest, it's all about the "black gold".