Kincaid's Plan for a Free Iran
Preamble
The story of the Iranian people is the story of one of the greatest struggles for freedom the world has ever known. The story of the Islamic Republic is the story of one of the greatest evils in the history of mankind.
I thought the world had learned its lesson from the Holocaust. I thought we would never see such evil again. I thought the world would never look away while thousands of innocent people were slaughtered. I was wrong. Not only did much of the world look away and do nothing it was far worse than that. Many nations actively helped enable the Islamic Republic to carry out its reign of terror for 47 years. Even the United Nations itself played a role in that failure.
It is shameful that America and Israel have been among the only nations willing to take meaningful action to help free the people of Iran from the conditions they have endured for nearly five decades.
Trump's goal is not genuine regime change, and real regime change will not happen under his administration. I make this distinction because Trump has claimed that regime change has already occurred that is not accurate.
However, regime change would be my goal if I were elected to Congress. I will work to persuade Congress, the White House, and other nations to join in the liberation of Iran. A free Iran would not happen quickly or all at once but that does not mean it cannot happen. It means we need a serious plan. This is that plan.
America and the Gulf nations would likely agree that Iran cannot have permanent control over the flow of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. The Gulf nations might whether militarily or through joint financial support back an effort to establish control over the southeastern part of Iran. The United States and Israel could neutralize Iranian ships and aircraft, but ground troops would still be needed. Iranians living in America and elsewhere including the United Kingdom could be trained to serve as soldiers and police forces in liberated territory.
Reza Pahlavi would be placed in charge of the transitional government. America and many other nations already have bases in Qatar. America and coalition partners move or lease bases in the new Free Iran territory. The ultimate goal would be the liberation of all of Iran, but this is how it would begin. A full invasion by American troops is not a realistic option. The approach described here is the only viable path forward that I see.
I also believe that cultural and political autonomy for the Kurds is a necessary component of Iran's ultimate liberation both because the Kurds want it and because they have earned it. I am fully committed to Kurdish autonomy, and that will not change.
This is a genuine long range plan. Trump does not appear to have a real plan he seems to be making decisions day by day, continually shifting objectives. My plan might not satisfy everyone , but it is a real plan a foundation that can be refined and improved over time.
One additional idea worth raising. I have long thought to address the situation involving millions of undocumented people in America, we should consider developing an American Foreign Legion modeled on the French Foreign Legion.Those not involved in violent crimes would be given the opportunity to join. Members could be deployed in support of operations like this one. Members of the American Foreign Legion would be eligible for citizenship after completing their service. People have been talking about a pathway to citizenship for years. This would be that pathway.
Most of Iran's aircraft and naval assets have already been destroyed. In time, the regime can rebuild. The window between now and then may be the best and perhaps the last real opportunity for regime change in Iran.
"I call upon all who love freedom to stand with us. Together we shall achieve victory." — General Dwight D. Eisenhower
What you have read above is a summary of the plan. Below is the more detailed version. This remains a foundation that can be refined and improved over time. Nothing is written in stone except for cultural and political autonomy for the Kurds. That component of the plan will never change.
The Case for Action
The Iranian people are among the most educated, culturally rich, and freedom loving people on earth. For nearly five decades, they have lived under a theocratic regime that has brutalized its own citizens, exported terrorism across the Middle East, and destabilized the entire region. The Islamic Republic is not simply a rival government it is a criminal enterprise that has forfeited any legitimate right to govern.
This is a long range strategic plan. It is not a call for reckless military adventure. It is a serious framework for achieving what decades of sanctions and diplomacy alone have failed to accomplish. Genuine, lasting freedom for the Iranian people.
Phase 1 Diplomatic Foundation
Before any military action is considered, the United States must build a legitimate international coalition. This means.
Securing Gulf State Commitment
The Gulf Cooperation Council nations particularly Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain have existential reasons to see the Islamic Republic ended. The United States would offer long term basing agreements, security guarantees, and economic partnerships in exchange for financial backing and logistical support.
Formalizing the Israel Partnership
Israel has already demonstrated both the capability and the will to degrade Iranian military assets. A formal if partially covert coordination framework would align Israeli operations with the broader coalition timeline.
Engaging Kurdish Leadership
Representatives of Iranian Kurdish groups, alongside Iraqi Kurdish leadership, would be brought into early negotiations. A framework guaranteeing Kurdish cultural and political autonomy within a future free Iran stopping short of full independence that could destabilize Turkey and Iraq would earn their cooperation without fracturing the coalition.
Establishing a Government in Exile
Reza Pahlavi, in coordination with representatives of the Iranian diaspora, Iranian civil society organizations, and democratic opposition groups, would form a provisional transitional council. This council would be recognized by coalition partners as the legitimate future government of Iran. The question of Iran's ultimate governmental structure would be decided by Iranians themselves through a free election within 5 years of liberation. The regime has stolen billions from the people of Iran over the years. This money has been transferred to banks around the world and must be tracked down. The assets of the regime outside of Iran should be confiscated and sold, with the proceeds placed under the control of the transitional council. Because of sanctions billions in government assets have already been frozen . But the family members of the regime are known to live in luxury in America and other countries. That money and assets needs to be taken also.Under current sanctions around 100 billion dollars in Iranian assets are frozen worldwide. About 1.5 billion in Japan, roughly 2 billion in the United States, and about 1.6 billion in certain European . If that money was put under the control of the provisional transitional council. They could use it to help fund the new government .
Phase 2 Military Preparation (concurrent with Phase 1)
Building the Iranian Volunteer Corps
Iranians living in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the Gulf states would be recruited into a structured volunteer military force. This is modeled on the Free French Forces of World War II an externally organized fighting force with genuine national legitimacy. Volunteers would undergo full military training at facilities around the world . The force would be officered by experienced Iranian American veterans of the U.S. military and military veterans from other nations wherever possible.
Neutralizing Iranian Air and Naval Capability
The United States Navy and Air Force, in coordination with Israel, would establish and enforce a no fly zone over southern Iran and neutralize remaining Iranian naval assets in and around the Strait of Hormuz. This protects global shipping and removes Iran's ability to close the strait an act that would constitute an attack on the entire global economy.
Intelligence and Internal Resistance
The CIA, Mossad, and allied intelligence services would intensify support for internal resistance networks already operating inside Iran. Secure communications, funding, and support would flow to resistance units inside of Iran. Women's rights organizations, ethnic minority groups, and democratic activists who have already demonstrated extraordinary courage in the uprisings of 2009, 2019, and 2022.
Phase 3 Liberation of the Southern Zone
The initial military objective is the establishment of a Free Iran Zone in the southeastern region of the country, roughly from the Gulf of Oman coast westward toward the Pakistani border. This region is strategically critical for three reasons. It controls access to the Strait of Hormuz, it is geographically separable from the heavily fortified Iranian interior, and it has a significant Baloch population with deep and longstanding grievances against the regime.
The Iranian Volunteer Corps, supported by U.S. air power and Gulf state logistics, would secure this zone. Coalition forces would not serve as occupiers they would serve in an advisory and air support capacity, with the Volunteer Corps as the primary ground force. This is the model that succeeded with the Kurdish Peshmerga against ISIS and must be applied here.
Within the Free Iran Zone, the transitional council would immediately establish civilian governance. courts, police, schools, hospitals, and a national press. The world must see, from day one, that this is liberation not occupation.
Phase 4 Expanding the Zone and Internal Collapse (Years 4–7)
History shows that authoritarian regimes, once they begin to lose territory and legitimacy simultaneously, become vulnerable to rapid internal collapse. The goal of Phase 4 is not necessarily a military march to Tehran it is creating the conditions under which the regime collapses from within.
This means continuing to expand the Free Zone northward as conditions allow. Maintaining maximum economic pressure through sanctions. Amplifying Persian language broadcasting and internet access to counter regime propaganda. A clear and public amnesty framework distinguishing war criminals and human rights violators from ordinary soldiers and officials would accelerate defections and hasten the regime's end.
Phase 5 Transition and Reconstruction
Governance
Within 5 Years of the regime's fall, Iran would hold its first free and internationally monitored election. The transitional council would oversee the process but would not determine its outcome. All Iranians including members of the diaspora would have the right to vote. Members of the Regime and their known supporters. Would be permanently banned from voting.
Iran's Nuclear Program
All nuclear facilities would be immediately placed under IAEA supervision upon the liberation of each territory. The transitional government would formally renounce nuclear weapons development as a condition of full international recognition and reconstruction assistance.
Reconstruction
A Marshall Plan style reconstruction fund contributed to by the United States, the European Union, Gulf states, and other partners would be established. Iran's own oil and gas revenues, freed from regime control, would serve as the primary engine of reconstruction. The goal is a prosperous, stable Iran that becomes an anchor of regional stability rather than a source of regional chaos.
Why This Plan Can Succeed
This plan differs from the failures of the past in several critical ways.
It is built around an Iranian fighting force with Iranian legitimacy not foreign troops imposing a foreign government. It begins with a defined geographic objective rather than a full scale invasion. It establishes civilian governance from the first day of liberation. It defines success clearly. A free election, a denuclearized Iran, and an exit for coalition forces. And it is honest about the timeline this is a decade long commitment, not a 30 day campaign.
The Iranian people have already shown the world who they are. In 2022, women burned their hijabs in the streets and faced bullets rather than submit. They do not need to be saved by America. They need America to create the conditions in which they can save themselves. That is what this plan does.
After Iraq and Afghanistan, the American people will not support a full invasion of Iran. They will not support the United States Army being the boots on the ground in Iran. This plan is something the American people could support. Most of the American people have no idea what is happening inside Iran. They don’t know about the suffering of the people of Iran. The news networks and schools have failed to educate people on how evil the regime is.
This plan was developed by Kincaid for Congress as a long range foreign policy framework. Specific operational details would be developed in coordination with the relevant military, intelligence, and diplomatic authorities upon election to Congress.
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