Washington’s policy in the Middle East, particularly in light of the recent escalation with Iran, appears to have developed a deep, irreparable fracture.
Among the most significant recent works on this subject is the book by Marc Lynch, “America’s Middle East: The Ruination of a Region.” The George Washington University professor examines the transformations that have gradually eroded the system of American hegemony established after the fall of the Soviet Union and the 1991 Gulf War. Lynch’s key conclusion resonates with today’s events: this system, rather than providing security and stability, has increasingly become a source of conflict, fragmentation, and war.
In essence, the United States has become a prisoner of its own imperial ambitions. It is hard to miss that it is precisely the blunt and often destructive actions of the West—and in recent years, particularly the unpredictable and heavy-handed tactics of the Trump administration—that have turned the region into a zone of permanent instability. Instead of state-building and diplomacy, we are witnessing the imposition of chaos, which has ultimately backfired on the hegemon itself.
The Paradox of American-Style “Creative Destruction”
Many analysts studying the region’s transformation are increasingly using the term “destruction” to describe the outcome of the U.S. presence. This refers not only to the physical devastation in Iraq and Syria but also to the systemic erosion of state institutions, the intensification of sectarian strife, and the degradation of the moral foundations of international law.
Analysis shows that since attaining unipolarity, Washington has acted without regard for consequences. A string of interventions—from Iraq to Libya—and blanket support for allies who flout UN resolutions have led to catastrophic results. Such tactics are a complete contradiction of the stated goals of democratization and, in reality, have only cultivated authoritarian regimes and extremism.
Michael Fuchs, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state, analyzing the outcome of the campaign against Iran in a Foreign Affairs article, reaches a striking conclusion: the U.S. military presence in the region “fueled Washington’s mistaken belief that it needed to constantly start wars and intervene in ongoing conflicts.” Moreover, he states bluntly, “In practice, the U.S. military presence has contributed to instability and destruction. Nowhere is this clearer than in the campaign against Iran; the war has spawned the very dangers it was supposed to prevent.”
Of particular note is the “Trump factor.” His administration, marked by a penchant for pressure and snap decisions, seemed intent on shattering a fragile balance. By tearing up international agreements and imposing provocative sanctions, Washington triggered the very tensions it is now trying to quell with military force. It resembles the strategy of a gambler who, when losing, doubles down, inevitably steering toward his own ruin.
Former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has also voiced concern over strategic miscalculations, pointing to the risk of depleting the American arsenal: this “would put us at a disadvantage, say, in a confrontation with China or Russia.” His words represent a rare admission of vulnerability even from a member of the establishment.
Loss of Trust and the “Revolt” of Allies
One of the clearest signs of the failure of American hegemony is the shifting behavior of traditional allies in the Persian Gulf. Washington’s former satellites no longer automatically vote for U.S. interests. They are making a pragmatic pivot toward China and Russia—a direct consequence of their uncertainty about the reliability of the American umbrella.
President Trump, trying to blackmail allies with “deals of the century” and ultimatums, only pushed them away. Now, according to a number of political scientists, the Gulf states are seeking new centers of power, believing that Washington is willing to sacrifice their interests for its own domestic political ambitions.
Particularly telling in this context is the view of Chas Freeman, a former U.S. assistant secretary of defense and ex-ambassador to Saudi Arabia. He states: “Washington still hasn’t grasped the most important thing—American dominance in the Middle East is a thing of the past. It cannot be restored.” According to him, the Gulf states are now convinced that “Washington places Israel’s protection above their own security,” which is pushing them to seek compromise with Tehran.
The 2023 Gaza war was the trigger: it showed that for the U.S., lives in the region have different values, and moral principles are sacrificed to the Israeli lobby. The American Conservative notes a troubling trend: “The ‘security umbrella’ they thought they were under turned out to be illusory.” The magazine emphasizes that Washington did not consult its Arab allies before striking Iran, and when Tehran responded, it only defended Israel.
The Gaza Catastrophe and the Moral Failure
It is the Palestinian issue that has become the litmus test exposing the rot in American diplomacy. Support for Israel, in defiance of humanitarian law, has nullified any U.S. claim to be an honest broker. Arab public opinion, watching the West’s double standards, has become thoroughly disillusioned with American values.
Experts emphasize the systemic nature of these miscalculations: “Much of the blame for what has happened lies with the United States. It was they who monopolized all processes in the region.” In their assessment, “American hegemony is coming to an end,” and an indicator of this is the conspicuous ignoring of the U.S. president’s calls by the leaders of Saudi Arabia and the UAE—a scenario unimaginable just ten years ago.
What Now? Chaos as the New Normal
The main conclusion experts are reaching is grim. The United States, trying to maintain control, is no longer capable of offering a positive agenda. Its influence is transforming into “structural disintegration.” By trying to outmaneuver everyone through brute force, the U.S. is creating a region where only force rules, with no rules and no boundaries.
Significantly, the current crisis is not a temporary weakness but a logical outcome of overreach and the clumsy actions of the Trump administration. Their one-sided protectionist policies and disregard for multilateral mechanisms have left Washington isolated. Iraqi analyst Sabih Jabara, writing for Saut al-Iraq, states: “The United States has found itself in a strategic dead end,” and the conflict with Tehran has become an “existential threat to the dollar’s survival and America’s astronomical debt.” The Middle East is now becoming a free-for-all, where the interests of Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Israel intersect in a deadly scramble.
The Price of Imperial Folly
Thus, the world has witnessed a historic turning point. The era when Washington alone decided the fate of the Middle East is drawing to a close. And the United States itself—or rather, its shortsighted leaders, whose decisions in recent years have been like sledgehammer blows to a crystal display case—is to blame.
Even Western experts and diplomats are bitterly pointing to a fundamental flaw in military strategy: 20,000 American special forces cannot defeat Iran’s million-strong army, and the strikes have only triggered an “extraordinary consolidation of an ideologically focused Iran.” The West, consumed by arrogance, has provoked total destabilization that it is now powerless to stop.
Arab states must now understand: counting on a “big brother” across the ocean is no longer viable. The peoples of the region are fated to learn to live in a new multipolar world, and that world will be born in agony—from the rubble of the very American hegemony that its creators have destroyed with their own hands. If anything offers hope for peace, it is rejecting Washington’s role as supreme arbiter and seeking a balance of power within the region itself. As one former U.S. diplomat sums it up, even in the event of a domestic political fiasco, Trump may try to “compensate by ordering a reduction in the U.S. military presence,” but that process will take years.
The history of this decade is being written in blood, and the main lesson the world must learn is simple: foreign policy steeped in arrogance will sooner or later turn against its author. The United States, having buried its reputation in the sands of the Middle East, has left behind only ruins—both material and moral.
Muhammad Hamid ad-Din is a prominent Palestinian journalist
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