"Trump may talk about the Middle East differently than Obama did. But the two seem to share the view that the United States is too involved in the region and should devote fewer resources and less time to it."
"The reduced appetite for U.S. engagement in the region reflects not an ideological predilection or an idiosyncrasy of these two presidents but a deeper change in both regional dynamics and broader U.S. interests."
According to @tcwittes and her co-author, the US should focus only on three interests in the Mideast:
- Sustaining freedom of navigation for the U.S. Navy and for global commercial traffic;
- Fighting terrorism;
- Supporting its main partners in the region.
- Sustaining freedom of navigation for the U.S. Navy and for global commercial traffic;
- Fighting terrorism;
- Supporting its main partners in the region.
"Lasting stability and security for the Middle East will come only if the relationship between rulers and the ruled changes... But that change cannot be driven by the United States without far more carrots and sticks than Washington is prepared to deploy."
The authors don't even consider for a second that "Europe" might fill part of the vacuum a withdrawing US is leaving behind. Instead "China or Russia (or both) will likely gain more of a footing in the Middle East as the United States pulls back."
