The Middle East Meltdown: Four Years of U. S. Failure

The past four years have been a stark reminder of the United States' failure to shape the destiny of the Middle East. From the withdrawal from Afghanistan to the mishandling of Iran's nuclear program, the Biden-Harris administration's policies have been a recipe for disaster. The region was once a beacon of stability, but now it's a hotbed of chaos and unpredictability. The United States' reputation as a reliable partner has been severely damaged, and its influence has dwindled to almost nothing. The War in Afghanistan was initially a success, with the rapid defeat of the Taliban and the establishment of a new government. However, subsequent efforts to build a stable and prosperous society failed miserably. The withdrawal of U. S. troops in 2021 was a catastrophic mistake, leaving the Taliban in control and the region in a state of turmoil. The costs of this failure are staggering, with the Taliban now in control of billions of dollars' worth of American military equipment and the region's stability hanging in the balance. The Islamic Republic of Iran is the greatest threat to American interests in the Middle East, and yet the U. S. has strengthened and emboldened Tehran over the past four years. The release of billions of dollars' worth of previously frozen Iranian funds and the increase in Iranian oil exports have only fueled Tehran's nuclear weapons program and its support for terrorism. The region is now more unstable than ever, with the Houthis in Yemen attacking international shipping and the Suez Canal at risk of being closed. The United States' failure to protect shipping in the Red Sea has far-reaching consequences, threatening Egypt's economy and indirectly Europe. The reduced traffic in the Suez Canal has weakened the Egyptian economy, and any destabilization of Egypt could send waves of refugees across the Mediterranean to Europe. The Biden-Harris administration's handling of the Middle East has been marked by a lack of strategic thinking and a failure to prioritize America's interests. The assassination of a journalist has been used as a pretext to distance the U. S. from Saudi Arabia, despite the country's importance to American security and the many positive reforms taking place there. The structure of strategic deterrence in the Middle East has been undermined, and the region is more chaotic and unpredictable than ever. The next president will inherit a Middle East in shambles, and it will take clear thinking, focus, and years of effort to rebuild America's position there.