Explaining Trump's Genius in the Middle East
Trump’s unorthodox mix of pressure, power, and pragmatism shattered old diplomatic molds — delivering a rare moment of calm to the world’s most combustible region.
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by Victor Davis Hanson
October 15, 2025
What did Donald Trump do differently in the Middle East compared to the failed efforts of past administrations, foreign powers, and the United Nations? Let us count ten different approaches.
1. Trump curtailed a considerable amount of Iranian oil income and its dispersal. He stopped the Iranian effort to build a bomb. Trump also allowed Israel to destroy Tehran’s air defenses, humiliate it militarily, and eliminate many of its top military officers and nuclear physicists.
Thus, Israel’s half-century-long worries about Iranian nukes were addressed. At the same time, its stature as a military power soared to an all-time high — even if it became more isolated politically. Israel became more confident but also more sensitive to past, current, and future American support — or pressure.
