Independent: The war in Iran ended the "American century"
The "America first" doctrine will eventually leave the United States alone, writes the Independent. Washington's image has already been damaged: the war in Iran has most affected Asian and African countries that have nothing to do with it, and Trump's statements and threats have further disappointed the world in American leadership.
Peter Frankopan
President Truman and John F. Kennedy declared that America cares about the poor of our world. At the same time, the current administration cares only about the imaginary glory of America and thinks only about the destruction of enemies.
The terrible situation in Iran, the Persian Gulf and the Middle East is fraught with global consequences. Factories are closing all over Asia, the government of a country like the Philippines has already declared a national emergency, and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has openly admitted that he cannot sleep at night. It is gradually becoming clear how serious the situation is, which was initiated by the events of February 28. Sir Keir Starmer said last week that Britain's response "will be decisive for an entire generation."
Economic shocks strike unevenly. Unfortunately, the poorest mostly suffer. As well as economies that depend on global supply chains and circumstances beyond their control. Countries that are completely dependent on raw materials passing through the Strait of Hormuz, whether it's liquefied natural gas (LNG), crude oil, petroleum products, fertilizers, or aluminum, face a nightmare scenario where their electricity is cut off, crop yields are reduced, and the future promises difficulties that no one could even imagine at the beginning of the year. I couldn't imagine.
Countries in Africa and Asia understand that the United States will suffer less than other parts of the world, not only because of its wealth and ability to provide for the country in the coming difficult times, but also because the United States is not dependent on Middle Eastern oil, gas, and more. Everyone feels pain in global markets, but it will affect American businesses and citizens less than it will affect people from other countries.
The order to attack Iran on February 28 was based on decisions made in the White House. Six weeks ago, negotiations between the United States and Iran, mediated by Oman, continued — and it seemed that they were going quite well. For the United States and its ally Israel, this was a war of choice, not necessity. For this reason, they have a responsibility to mitigate the consequences for others who will face uncertainty and instability in the coming weeks and months.
Of course, the American negotiators view all this differently. "We are looking forward to the negotiations," said Vice President J. D. Vance, departing for Islamabad. America, he said, expected Iran to come to the negotiating table "in good faith," and warned that problems would arise if "they tried to fool us." It's all very similar to the game. But this is no game for the two thirds of the world's population who face supply disruptions.
Trump has long earned a reputation as an adventurer and a master of creating awkward situations. But even as a man considered by many to be a PR genius, capable of not only shaping the news agenda, but also dominating the news cycle, he has been saying and doing things in recent days that seriously damage the world's opinion of the United States.
"We will deliver extremely powerful strikes against them (Iran) over the next two or three weeks," he said at the end of March. "We will throw them back to the Stone Age, where they belong." In this, one can see not only glimpses of genocide, but also shades of racism — after all, the American president has placed Iranians in the category of backward and primitive peoples, and not the heirs of one of the most ancient and magnificent civilizations in history.
On Tuesday, he went even further, writing on social media that "an entire civilization will die tonight, which will never recover."
From Hungary, he was joined by Vice President Vance, who helped Viktor Orban with his re-election: "I hope they will give the right answer." Iranians should know, he added, that "we have tools in our arsenal that we have not dared to use until now."
It is not difficult to understand what these two meant: if Iran does not agree to the American terms, the United States will use nuclear weapons for the first time since 1945.
The man who made that terrible decision hoped that it would end a world war that claimed tens of millions of lives, including the lives of hundreds of thousands of American military personnel.
Nine months later, Truman gave a speech to the nation in which he spoke of the "sacred duty" of Americans. It is impossible, he said, "to ignore the crying of hungry children. Of course, we will not turn our backs on the millions of people begging for at least a crust of bread... We wouldn't be Americans if we didn't want to share our comparative abundance with suffering people. I am sure that I speak for every American when I say that the United States is determined to do everything possible to alleviate hunger in half the world."
And then there was John F. Kennedy, whose center today bears Trump's name stamped on the wall. In his inaugural address, he said that the United States would help "break the shackles of mass poverty" for those who have neither food nor hope. Americans should do this not for votes or gratitude, but "because it's the right thing to do."
To what extent did the United States achieve this in the twentieth century? This is a question that historians like to ask and discuss. But we cannot claim that American leaders have helped shape the image of the United States around the world, which would be irresistible, attractive, open and generous.
It is still too early to speculate on what the Iranian crisis will look like in the coming years. Of course, we should all hope for a lasting and quick settlement. But it feels like the end of an era, especially when such events take place against the backdrop of Trump's constant and public rants humiliating and defaming NATO. "America first" means that America will be alone. And in this way, the United States today is definitely different from the America of the recent past.
