Former Vice President Mike Pence said that President Donald Trump’s military campaign against Iran is intended to bring an end to a long-running conflict with Tehran, rather than ignite a new war.

Speaking during an appearance on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday,” Pence argued that successive U.S. administrations have responded to Iranian aggression over many years, and that the current operation represents the culmination of those efforts.

“One administration after another has slashed at the tentacles of Iran that have taken violence to American forces, to American citizens, to our allies in the region, most especially Israel, and making that case that this isn’t about starting a war, it’s about finishing a war that’s nearly 50 years in the making,” Pence said during an appearance on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday.”

Pence pointed to the origins of the conflict nearly five decades ago, when Iranian students seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held American diplomats hostage for 444 days, marking a turning point in U.S.-Iran relations.

Iran’s current regime, which came to power in 1979, has remained a central focus of U.S. policy, particularly as the Trump administration carries out strikes under Operation Epic Fury.

The campaign has already dealt significant blows to Iran’s leadership. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during the initial round of strikes on February 28, and Vice President Vance has indicated that his successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, may have been injured in subsequent attacks.

Pence suggested that the ongoing military pressure could open the door to internal change within Iran, especially following earlier waves of protests in which thousands were reportedly killed.

“We saw the threats this week, which to me sounded a lot like weakness by this regime, saying that they would treat anyone that took to the streets like those did in January as enemy combatants and had instructed their internal security to open fire,” Pence said of Iran’s warnings against large-scale demonstrations.

He continued by pointing to the regime’s history of violent repression and argued that weakening its capabilities could empower the Iranian people to act.

“Not surprising, they have murdered tens of thousands of their own people even in recent months. But I think hitting their military infrastructure and hitting their internal law enforcement security will then create the conditions where once degraded, the people of Iran would be able to step forward and reclaim their country. I think that’s step one,” he said of the military operation overseas.

Pence added that a renewed American presence in the Middle East, following the withdrawal from Afghanistan, would send a broader signal on the global stage.

He said it would “send a message” to Beijing, Moscow and “enemies of freedom around the world, that America remains the leader of all free nations.”