[Senior U.S. Defense Official Refuses to Answer Whether Government Will Seek Congressional Authorization to Resume Strikes on Iran] According to a report by Jinse Finance on May 20, citing CNN, a senior U.S. Department of Defense official declined to clarify whether the Trump administration would rule out the possibility of deploying ground forces to Iran or whether it would seek congressional authorization to resume military action against Tehran. During a hearing of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Representative Patrick Ryan asked, "Are we restarting offensive combat operations?" Daniel Zimmerman, Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, responded, "Of course, that decision is made by the President." Ryan pressed further, "Has this been presented as an option to the President?" Zimmerman replied, "As you know, this is entirely the President's decision." When asked whether there were plans to seek explicit congressional authorization or a declaration of war given that the current situation has persisted for nearly three months, Zimmerman stated, "Negotiations at the highest levels are still ongoing to seek a long-term solution." He also refused to disclose whether the administration would consider deploying ground forces to Iran, adding that Trump "has all options available."