President Donald Trump wants to declare “Mission Accomplished” after U.S. airstrikes on Iran were followed by a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran. But as the smoke clears, we have no clear evidence that Trump’s shoot-from-the-hip strategy achieved its goal of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. And there’s even reason to think his abrupt decision to blow up talks over a new nuclear deal and then drop bombs on the country could backfire by convincing Iran it needs to secure nuclear deterrence more than ever.
Trump has repeatedly said that the U.S. has destroyed “all” of Iran’s nuclear facilities and capabilities, and trumpeted his ability to just as quickly make “peace” abroad, as he helped negotiate a delicate ceasefire between Israel and Iran. (Both countries accused each other of violating the ceasefire immediately after it was scheduled to go into effect; IDF Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamir said “the campaign against Iran is not over” but entering a “new phase.”) In an apparent bid to instantly commemorate the attacks on Iran, Trump proposed deeming the episode “THE 12 DAY WAR.”
What’s worse is that Iran now has more incentive than ever to pursue a nuclear weapon.
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