London Bangla A Force for the community…
HE IS stuck. US President Donald Trump is fighting disaster on three fronts – and fighting it badly.
First is the attack he launched on Iran. He was never clear what his war aims were, but they were probably centred around an attempt to stop Iran developing nuclear weapons (which is what Israel wanted) and an attempt to remove the regime and install a new government friendly to the USA.
He has failed on both counts.
•Iran has said for a long time that it did not want to develop a nuclear weapon, so Trump could not end the war on Iran repeating that assurance. He set a higher bar: Iran had to agree to its enriched uranium being removed from the country – which is even harder than removing a mountain of flytipping from Oxfordshire.
•Trump murdered Iran’s Leader – and the regime remained in place. Trump told the people of Iran to take over the regime – but the regime was the side holding the guns. The people had learned what happens when you heed Trump’s calls for you to take to the streets, so they weren’t doing it again.
Trump: under pressure
Trump has also made matters worse. Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz. Trump responded by also blockading the Strait of Hormuz. All the countries who can’t get oil or other services delivered now (and it’s a lot of countries) are pressing Trump to get the Strait open. Iran has fired on fellow Gulf states, damaging oil transportation infrastructure and refineries – leading to an exodus of expats, and economic decline. Gulf states are now pressing Trump to get this war settled and to get out of the area so they can find a new way forward.
Trump gave Iran an ultimatum to agree his demands on nukes and the Strait of Hormuz, but Iran has not collapsed. Faced with having to make a choice between settling for less or doing more bombing –- both of which would have been unpopular at home – Trump found a third way: veto the draft agreement and… nothing else. The draft agreement was, it transpired, no peace agreement. It was a Memorandum of Understanding, stating that both sides would stop blockading the Strait of Hormuz and there would be a further 60-day ceasefire, during which they would talk about the nuclear issue.
Trump has taken back personal control of the war outcomes. He has said the settlement is not good enough. He has said that he will not do any bombing for the next 60 days (though in fact he has sent off a couple of air strikes on Iranian military targets). He hopes this will make him look strong and magnanimous. It actually makes him look foolish.
While Trump dithers, he has faced further setbacks over foreign and domestic policies.
•Israel has been making further advances on taking over Lebanon – as well as taking over more of Gaza, as Trump’s peace agreement there has not been implemented, and taking over more of the West Bank. Trump has announced a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, both of which have ignored him.
•Trump had set up an “Anti-Weaponisation Fund” to compensate people persecuted by the US Administration for political purposes. His idea was to channel money to people who had been charged with offences over the riots on Capitol Hill after the last presidential elections – that is, to Trump supporters. That Fund has now been outlawed by a court decision, and the Department of Justice has said that it will abide by that decision.
Other countries should increase the pressure on Trump to stop meddling in Iran and call off the attack dogs of Israel. Then everyone can sit down and try to negotiate a peaceful settlement. It would help if the US Democratic Party could seize the moment and develop an anti-Trump movement to claim back the USA. No, neither are likely. Does anyone have a better idea?
●Read more about it:
Trump holds back on Iran attack – for now
On-off talks are off again as Trump withdraws
