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The chief of U.S. Central Command, Gen. Erik Kurilla, has emerged as an influential voice on the Middle East who is said to have the ear of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as the administration considers significant U.S. intervention in Iran.
Officials have noted that almost all of his requests have received the green light, such as more aircraft carriers and fighter planes in the area, according to Politico. Kurilla is said to have played a large role in giving advice on what the U.S. response to the rising tensions between Iran and Israel should be.
Known as “The Gorilla,” Kurilla has overruled top Pentagon officials and has been a decisive voice on the next actions on Iran, people familiar with the dynamic tell the outlet.
Hegseth has reportedly deferred to Kurilla even as the secretary has attempted to project an image as a tough leader who has pushed to reduce the influence of four-star generals and increase civilian control.
A former official told Politico that “If the senior military guys come across as tough and warfighters, Hegseth is easily persuaded to their point of view.”
The official added that the general “has been very good at getting what he wants.”
Former Trump Pentagon official Dan Caldwell appeared on the Breaking Points program on Monday, when he said Kurilla ”takes a fundamentally different view of the importance of the Middle East than a lot of other people in the administration. And he also, I think, believes that a military campaign against Iran will not be as costly as others.”
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence you see a lot of the pressure ramping up to do something prior to his retirement time,” said Caldwell.
People familiar with the general told HuffPost that he’s particularly close to Israel, more so than other U.S. officials.
“He had better information about what they were up to and what they were seeing in their intelligence before we got it than anyone else in our government,” a former official told the outlet.
One of the people who spoke to Politico said the military official, who’s close to former National Security Adviser and U.N. ambassador nominee Mike Waltz, has met with President Donald Trump more than most other generals. Kurilla is coming to the end of his time heading U.S. Central Command, and as such, some believe he may be less concerned about any consequences from advocating for his views.
Four people told the outlet that Kurilla’s argument for sending more weapons to the region came up against the opposing views of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby. They have argued for caution against overcommitting to the region.
U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM, is the Pentagon’s top military command in the Middle East.
“CENTCOM is trying to grab every asset they can from every other theater,” a person familiar with the situation told Politico. “That’s what CENTCOM always does.”
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told the outlet that Hegseth makes use of officials’ knowledge and then decides what to recommend to Trump. “Secretary Hegseth empowers all of his combatant commanders the same way, by decentralizing command and harnessing their real-world expertise,” said Parnell. “Our senior leaders are in lockstep and will continue to work in unison to deliver on President Trump‘s national security agenda.”
One defense official rejected the notion that Caine and Kurilla disagree on significant issues.
The official said there’s “Absolutely no daylight between Kurilla and Caine. It’s a hand-in-glove relationship.”
They added that the two commanders present options to the president together.
Kurilla reportedly has more influence than has been commonplace during other administrations. Generals tend to be restricted in their influence by Pentagon chiefs, who at times reject requests to achieve a balance in U.S. troops stationed around the world. However, one person familiar told Politico that they had never seen Hegseth reject a request from Kurilla.
Two defense officials noted that the Pentagon directed a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East this week, in addition to new deployments of fighter planes, including F-22s, F-35s, and F-16s. This means that the U.S. has had two aircraft carriers in the area on two separate occasions this year.
It removes such assets from the Pacific even as Pentagon leaders have attempted to shift focus to China.
Kurilla appeared on Capitol Hill last week to testify before Congress, saying that he had prepared a “wide range of options” for Hegseth and Trump to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons.
However, former officials told the outlet that Kurilla’s expansive influence is due to the nature of his post as the top military leader of the command overseeing the Middle East.
Bilal Saab served in the Pentagon during Trump’s first stint in the White House, telling Politico that “This has little to do with Kurilla himself.”
“There’s no resistance in the Pentagon or the NSC to moving assets to protect troops and personnel in the region,” said Saab.
Dan Shapiro served as the top Middle East policy official at the Pentagon until January. He told Politico that Kurilla is “extremely strategic and persuasive about what CENTCOM can do given adequate resources.”
“That was certainly true in the Biden administration. It may be more true now,” he added.
“He’s got the look of the general that both Hegseth and Trump are looking for,” a former official told the outlet. “He’s a big dude, he’s jacked, he’s exactly this ‘lethality’ look they’re going for.”
From Elk River, Minnesota, Kurilla attended West Point and was commissioned into the infantry in 1988. He has led deployments in Panama, Iraq, Haiti, Kosovo, and Afghanistan, according to Central Command, which he has led since April 2022. He has two daughters with his wife, Mary Paige.
Kurilla was the subject of an Army investigation after he allegedly shoved a military crew member, but his courage has also impressed top officials. He was awarded a Bronze Star after leading U.S. troops in a 2005 firefight during the Iraq War, even after being shot three times.
The Independent has contacted the Department of Defense for comment.
