Gen. David Petraeus, Former CIA Director, Fmr. Central Commander and American commander in Iraq. Adam Jeffery | CNBC

Ex-CIA chief David Petraeus warned Tuesday that there is "clearly the prospect for some inadvertent escalation" of tensions between the United States and Iran. Petraeus also said during an interview on CNBC's "Halftime Report" that it is "not clear what our policy is in the Middle East regarding Iran's nuclear program." "It's not entirely clear to me what our policy to [Iran's] nuclear program, missile program and malign activity [is]," said Petraueus, a retired four-star Army general, who had served as commander of the U.S. Central Command, and the commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan. Petraeus spoke amid growing tensions in the Persian Gulf region.