By Vishwamithra –

“…where the mind is led forward into ever-widening thought and action; Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.” ~ Rabindranath Tagore

Donald Trump is obsessed with the ideal of ‘winning’ all the time. Despite losing consecutive battles in the air and at sea, the government of Iran has not collapsed. Supreme Leader Khamenei and the top military leadership were massacred on the first night of fighting. Trump’s assessment and analysis, if any, of any situation, domestic or international, are often taken in the context of a transaction. Transactional politics has a very short shelf-life. Men whose ideals are defined in terms of debit and credit usually do not enjoy a long lifespan. Perennially engaged in superficial deals, such men often see the world through a prism of self-centered paradigms.

However, when such men assume political power via democratically held elections, the boomerang effect is not only felt by those who wield that power; the impact on those who elect them also comes under critical judgment. The prevailing global sentiment among nations and their citizens bears ample testimony to this fact. America becoming an international laughingstock flows from such a diabolical process. In the courtyard of world opinion, Iran—once a stumbling block in the equilibrium of peace—is now garnering a level of sympathy it has yet to earn.

Fighting an asymmetrical warfare, Iran, as a cohesive governance machine, has managed to survive despite heavy bombardment by Israel and the US. Nevertheless, the resilience of Iran as a nation-state will be further tested if and when the Straits of Hormuz become open to international navigation free of the debris of war and unintended collateral damage. The economic impact of the closure of the Hormuz is already been felt all over the globe, surpassing the 1973 oil crisis caused by the OPEC decision to regulate crude oil production and its exports. A mere attack – a surgical bombardment of Iranian capital and its military and government targets- on the soil of Iran has developed into a massive military engagement initiated by Israel and the United States of America. The economic strain is being felt more acutely when one juxtaposes surging gas prices with  tariff-driven hikes on average household items. All that is on the American side of the equation.

USA

However, when one watches either BBC or Al Jazeera, the perspective changes drastically. They seem to take a more realistic and balanced approach, especially towards their presentation of news; a middle-of-the-road television watcher might conclude that the other side of the coin is more compelling than the one that is shown to you, whether you concur or not. To make matters worse for America and its main ally Israel, the main culprit in this television drama is none other than American President Donald Trump.

Trump may want to portray himself as one engaged in bold diplomacy, but in the final analysis, his own public conduct over the last one and half years would bear witness to the fact that unpredictability in international affairs has caused many an international impasse; it is ‘consistency of character’ that is revered by the rest of the world, not daredevil utterances in order to steal headlines in the global media. I pause to restate the core of my submission: while the administration markets its style as “bold,” the recurring global reaction has been a shift toward alternative arrangements as other nations seek the consistency they no longer find in Washington.

Trump’s primary concern seems to be centered on the day’s stock market indices and the price of gas at the pump. His entire governance policies, style and approach are defined and shaped by political and personal measurements.

Of the three powers, America, Israel and Iran, that are engaged in the current theater of war, America is the main and most consequential actor. Nevertheless, it is deeply disheartening to observe that, despite the unquestioned loyalty of his Cabinet Secretaries, President Trump’s international image has taken a massive hit precisely due to their own shortcomings. The very visual of Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, is dispiriting. He must consult a media cum public relations expert as to how he should stand and sit in the company of Trump.

Secretary Hegseth is no better. In fact, he is worse than others; he brings along a lot of unwanted criticisms; his style of articulation, the very substance of his arguments, sometimes bordering on  inhumane and downright unpleasant, would not add anything positive to Trump’s regime. Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Chief Kash Patel, in the opinion of many political pundits, have  brought the decorum of governance and public conduct to a new low. It was most vividly exhibited during the Select Committee Hearings. Perceiving one’s audience solely as Donald Trump invariably leads to this bizarre position.

Caught in the mix of Cabinet mediocrity and a raging war in the Middle East, Trump, having promised the obliteration of nuclear sites and total surrender by Iran, is now looking for a narrative of victory. Having bathed himself in self-esteem and a false veneer of a genius, he simply cannot come to terms with the unexpected resilience of Iran. In order to apply some modicum of control over the country’s economy, specifically the stock market, Trump has started issuing unverifiable statements to  which the market has no choice but to react. Such short-term political communications might look strategic and wise but when one looks deep into their veracity, they fall flat on their face.

Israel

Israel has played a very consistent game. Yet, Israel’s immediate geopolitical needs require a much more patient and balanced approach in the long run. Israel, some say, is the only country in which apartheid as a governing principle is openly practiced and tolerated. Her preoccupation with the Holocaust during the World War II and its inhuman profile may have sustained modern Israel’s stubborn and strategic approach to international affairs since its birth in 1948. Yet, time has failed to erase the unbearable sufferings and cruelties that they, Jews as one whole people, had to endure. Homage paid, time and time again, via various media presentations to their unspeakable horrors and ‘man’s inhumanity to man’ has filled many libraries and cinema theaters.

The nation-state of Israel gained its ‘unbeatable’ logo after she defeated the Egyptian, Jordanian and Syrian armies in six days in 1967. In the ensuing Six-Day War, Israel captured and occupied the West Bank from Jordan, the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, and the Golan Heights from Syria. Israeli forces expelled three hundred thousand (300,000) Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Seeds of the present day Palestinian problem were sowed.

However, there is a massive difference between the then Prime minister Levi Eshkol (of the Six-Day War) and the present day Netanyahu. Eshkol was known for his “collegial” and “moderate” approach, attempting to unite a deeply divided society. Netanyahu is viewed as a polarizing figure whose leadership has often been linked to right-wing populism and confrontation with his political rivals.

In Donald Trump, Netanyahu found his most gullible bedfellow. One feeding the other, both these leaders have taken the entire Middle East to the brink of long-term, unending conflict. While the Israeli Prime Minister is leading a campaign of unceasing bombardment of Iran’s military and industrial sites, the American President is providing support with America’s modern and lethal weaponry. Against this joint military onslaught Iran should have no chance of survival. But that is not to be.

Iran

Referring to Iran, almost all, including the western media, makes it a point to name it as a 47-year old regime.  Ayatollahs did not found the Persian Empire. The Persian civilization is even older than one would like to know. It stretches back much further than the time the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi ruled Iran. During the Persian Empire (c. 539–332 BCE), the land of Israel was an autonomous province known as Yehud Medinata (or simply Yehud) within the Achaemenid Empire’s satrapy (a province governed by  a satrap of the ancient Persian Empire)  of “Beyond the River”. Located in the Southern Levant, the area was revitalized after Cyrus the Great permitted Jewish exiles to return and rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. Iranians, before they embraced Islam as a religion are Persians, heir to one of the richest ancient civilizations. Before they are Muslims, they are Persians first. They integrated into Islam rather than replace the core Persian identity.

But we are not living in ancient times. This is the twenty-first century, and Israel, America, and Iran must all deal with present-day sociopolitical, economic, and cultural developments. Yet that ‘Persianness’ of Iran has not vanished; the way the current Iranian regime is responding to a very complex international crisis cannot be callously disregarded as the response of an ‘enemy of the world’. The asymmetrical fight they have launched against Israel, America and other America-friendly states in the region must be treated with utmost seriousness.

Iran’s campaign of closing the Straits of Hormuz has caused enough headache for Trump and the rest of the world. An easily predictable tactic of the enemy has been ignored or the enemy was underestimated by the United States and Israel. In either case, it represents an unpardonable military and political miscalculation.   

After the victors celebrate with champagne and caviar, the defeated will settle down to sulking and self-pity. The real losers are those who have been overthrown from their lands, those who have lost their livelihoods as industrial development has been destroyed, and most of all, those whose precious lives have been taken away, making an ugly caravan of moving skeletons and hungry children. But the strangest irony is that we are witnessing the repetition of our own history because we have yet again failed to learn from it. We are indeed, in the words of a savant, condemned to repeat it.

*The writer can be reached at vishwamithra1984@gmail.com