Pentagon Plan to Reorganize Military Could Undermine U.S.-Israel Security, Experts Warn

Senior Pentagon officials are reportedly weighing a sweeping proposal to reorganize the U.S. military that would shift authorities and resources away from the Middle East, a move experts warn could undermine U.S.-Israel security cooperation and destabilize the region.

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Blaise Misztal, vice president for policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, echoed these concerns, saying that such a plan would have reverberations beyond shared cooperation. He noted that CENTCOM plays an important role in leveraging regional partnerships and putting together a defensive coalition of Middle Eastern countries — key to countering Iranian aggression.

“If we assume that the proposals go into effect, and we get rid of CENTCOM, or subsume it into some sort of larger combating command, it’s entirely feasible that a lot of those benefits will be lost, and a lot of the progress that has been made over the past five years will be reversed,” said Misztal, referring to the timeframe in which Israel joined CENTCOM’s area of responsibility.

Misztal raised concerns about the proposal’s objective to decrease the number of four-star generals and admirals who report directly to Hegseth, which would see CENTCOM’s command status downgraded and remove its four-star authority.

“Whoever would be responsible for the Middle East would no longer be a four-star general. A lot of what has been accomplished by CENTCOM has been accomplished by the fact that it is commanded by a four-star general,” Misztal said, noting that such leaders bring prestige and influence into the region. “If you do not have a four-star [general] in charge of a combat and command with the resources and authorities that come along with that, even if you have the same level of coordination and cooperation, they might not be able to allocate the resources that would be needed to achieve those same policy objectives.”

Misztal added that such a move would also “take away the perception of the U.S. caring about the Middle East,” which he said would hurt U.S. posture in the region and benefit Iran.

“When [Arab partners] perceive that there’s a flagging of U.S. interest or involvement in the region, they turn away, they strike deals with Iran, they reach out to Russia or China, or make their own security arrangements,” said Misztal. “It sets in motion the possibility for a lot of our partners to walk away from the cooperative security arrangements that have been built both with the United States and with Israel.”

Experts emphasized that any proposed change to CENTCOM would not necessarily signal a shift in U.S. policy toward Israel. However, Misztal said it could become more difficult for the U.S. to execute military policy in the region and provide the same level of support moving forward.

“A lot of the U.S.-Israel relationship is being managed personally between President [Donald] Trump and Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu, or by [White House Special Envoy] Steve Witkoff or Jared Kushner, and presumably that part of the relationship would not change, regardless of what happens on the security side,” said Misztal. “But affecting policies where it comes to bringing U.S. military power to bear might be more challenging.”

Specifics of the proposal remain limited and few details have been shared with Congress, according to reports. The changes would require approval from both Hegseth and Trump. In the event the plan were to move forward, Misztal said he could envision a scenario in which a smaller Middle East-focused structure remains within a broader command.

“Without more detail as to what is being planned, it’s hard to know entirely what will happen,” said Misztal. “It is possible that in some new combatant command there will remain a sub-command that is focused on the Middle East, that can continue to try to focus on the threats, like we’ve seen with ISIS and Syria over the past week, or focus on Iran more broadly, or continued cooperation with Israel on ceasefires in Lebanon and Gaza.”

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