Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not dismiss the possibility of deploying ground troops in Iran when questioned about the joint military operation between the U.S. and Israel there.

Speaking at a Tuesday press briefing, Hegseth appeared guarded on whether President Donald Trump may order “boots on the ground” in Iran, but stressed that “the upcoming days will be decisive” as far as the conflict is concerned.

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“We’re not going to foreclose any option,” he said. “You can’t fight and win a war if you tell your adversary what you are willing to do or what you are not willing to do, to include boots on the ground. Our adversary right now thinks there are 15 different ways we could come at them with boots on the ground. And guess what? There are.”

He added, “So if we needed to, we could execute those options on behalf of the president of the United States and this department. Or maybe we don’t have to use them at all. Maybe negotiations work, or maybe there’s a different approach.”

Hegseth’s comments came in response to a question from the Daily Wire’s White House correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan, who asked about President Donald Trump’s messaging on the war to Americans who “love” and “strongly believe in him,” but have reservations about the prospect of U.S. ground troops in Iran.

The defense secretary also said he doesn’t understand why Trump’s MAGA base “wouldn’t have faith in his ability to execute on this,” adding: “Look at his track record of pursuing peace through strength, America First outcomes.”

Recent polls have shown that the majority of Americans disapprove of the U.S. military operation in Iran ― dubbed Operation Epic Fury ― with their opinions divided starkly along party lines. A survey published last week by The Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found just 12% of respondents strongly or somewhat favored deploying U.S. troops on the ground to fight Iran.

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To date, at least 13 U.S. service members have been killed in Iran’s counterattacks.

Fox News host Johnny “Joey” Jones, who is Hegseth’s former colleague, urged both Trump and Hegseth to “get the hell out of” Iran as quickly as possible, while pointing to the limited “tolerance” most Americans have for foreign conflicts.

“If you send our men and women into that country to kill our bad guys, to spill their blood because they deserve it, I don’t have to agree with you on it,” he said on Fox’s “Big Weekend Show” Sunday. “Just please do this: Don’t nation-build. Don’t win hearts and minds. Don’t spread democracy. Spill the blood of the evil that deserve to die without our hands tied and without a PR campaign and get the hell out of there. That’s all we have tolerance for.”