A Region in Disorder

The abstruse contemporary affairs and internal political scenarios are hard to comprehend
without retrospection of the drastic changes in the political map of the world and demarcation
of nation states in the aftermath of WW2 that shaped the world into whole new form. The US
rose with a global aim of propagating liberal democratic order in the world and get rid of the
monarchies especially in the Muslim world. The nascent states trenched into such turmoils and
troubles that they never bounced back and it became ever challenging to extricate from the
deep rooted problems. Creation of an exclusive Jewish state on behalf of the US and the West
in Middle East dragged the region into ever flaring flames. Israel and the United States started a
series of mutual efforts to pursue and secure their interests in the region, but the regional
dynamics proved to be very challenging that the partners are still struggling to deal with it. The
United States wanted a continual presence in order to ensure its hold in the region to
camouflage Israel on one hand, and on the other it wanted an uninterrupted supply of energy
from the oil rich region. When Mussadiq Hussain, an elected prime minister of Iran in 1953,
wanted to nationalize oil industry of Iran, the US usurped him of power through clandestine
manners, about which CIA later confessed, and imposed dictatorship in the country. With the
reins of power in the hands of Raza Shah Pehalvi, a US stooge, in Iran, it was convenient for the
US to carry on its interests in the region through its so called satellite state. Meanwhile, the
ongoing tensions between Israel and its neighbors resulted in Arab-Israel War of 1967 as a
result of which Israel occupied Gaza Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank of the Jordan
River including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. A truce took place as result of Camp
David, and Egypt was neutralized against Israel gaining back its captured territories from Israel
and the current sense of understanding between the two countries is result of that accord.
Occupation of Golan Heights of Syria by Israel, to which Trump has officially recognized Israel’s
territory last year, became a bone of contention between the two countries and it led
acrimonious vibes to prevail between the borders. The authoritarian regime in Iran caused
frustration among people because of their depriving conditions on one hand, and on the other
it caused anguish against American imperialism in the country. The aggravating circumstances
turned the unrest into to revolution. With the Islamic revolution in 1979, extradited Ruhollah
Khomeini, a staunch rival of the US, came back to Iran after fifteen years of political asylum in
France and was escorted towards throne. The revolution ended an era of collaboration
between the two countries and the US found itself hapless. Growing public sentiment against
regressive American policies and its holding in the region and stringent stance of Iranian
government towards the US started an era of arch rivalries between the foes that continued
during coming decades. The possible spillover of revolution across the gulf and residing
sectarian divide between Iran and Saudi Arabia intimidated Saudi crowns to plunge into the
conflict to plague Iran and it ignited proxies between the two regional rivals. To counter the
Islamic Revolution, the US started patronizing Saddam Hussain of Iraq, and Iran bore a
significant loss because of the resulting war between two neighbors. When Saddam Hussain, a
leverage turned liability, was held reprehensible by the US for his aggression towards neighbors
and possible possession of chemical weapons, the US got rid of him after invading Iraq in 2003.
During this whole period, Israel and the regional allies were majorly dependent on American
boots on the ground for their security. Pervasive extension of the US military bases and
ubiquitous US troops in the region kept the things in order by force, but the existential threat
remained at its place. Mismanaged war left Iraq lurching, and the resulting power vacuum left
unfilled, of which the current instability itself manifests. With the rise of numerous non-state
actors and radical groups along with Al-Qaeda, after 9/11, further added to worries of the
United States. A global war on terror, in pursuit of global peace and harmony, started which
further entangled the already conflict-engaged America. The US curbed Iran during these years
through severe economic sanctions, which left Iran’s economy crippling. With the failed Arab
Spring, starting from Tunisia and taking Bahrain, Egypt, Syria, Libya, and Yemen into account,
the American dream of having a democratic political order in the region once again slayed
down, and the adamant response of Bashar Ul Assad towards regime change in Syria ignited
worst of its war between regime and the rebels. The power struggle resulted in the civil war,
the most brutal in Syrian history killing almost 380,000 lives and left half of the country’s
population homeless. The country became a hot battleground of proxies between global
powers and non-state actors supporting their respective sides. The arch enemies did not miss
the chance to inflict damage upon each other. Russia for the first time after disintegration of
USSR appeared in the conflict zone siding with the regime and Iran against rebels and the US.
Amid skirmishes on the battle field, a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action commonly known as
Iran Nuclear Deal was struck between Iran and world powers, permanent members of the
Security Council and Germany, after tough negotiations of years. The deal gave a
comprehensive plan to keep a check on Iran’s nuclear facilities and limit its nuclear capabilities
with an ease on Iran’s economy, choking because of tough sanctions. Besides giving a hope a
hope of pacifying relations between the two countries, the deal also offended some regional
players and few factions within the United States calling it a ‘bad deal’. Although, the deal was a
mutual agreement between Iran and the US, with world powers as mediators, but Donald
Trump unilaterally withdrew from the JCPA, and slapped grueling economic sanctions on Iran to
pressurize it. Iran and the world powers, signatory of the agreement, regretted US move, but
Iran remained committed to the deal, pursuing its nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
The pressing sanctions caused frustration to Iran impeding its offences, through proxies and
Iran’s backed militias, against the US troops in the region. Prevailing Iran’s influence in the
Middle East, of which the resilient Assad regime in Syria and growing leverage in Iraq are the
manifestations, caused anguish to the US pushing it to take a hard stance on Iran. To counter
Iran’s evolving influence, the US started a crackdown against the country and killing of Iranian
general of Quds forces is part of the conduct to tight the rope around Iran. Implications of such
a reckless move could be disastrous for the region and the world as whole because Middle East
is at the edge of knife for the time being. However, Iran has vowed to avenge, but any haste in
response will cost too much because Iran cannot compete America’s kinetic military abilities.
Both sides should show restraint, and avoid any provocative actions. The US strategy to counter
with excessive force instead of political settlement and insufficient understanding of regional
political apparatus rendered unexpected results. Instead of yielding peace and prosperity, the
US efforts to democratize the region further complicated the situation. The same has happened
in Afghanistan, and the recent disclosure of facts about Afghan war by the US officials, about
which Washington Post has recently published a report, shows that miscalculations, unclear
objectives and sole dependence on military force caused failure of the United States. Now, it is
up to the US to come up with a more pragmatic approach and comprehensive plan to clean the
messed up region. Instead of pressing its enemies through its military might, the US must adopt
diplomatic mechanism to sort out the outstanding issues. Foreign policy should be in line with
international laws and countries interests in contrast to the individual leaders pursuing it by
their whims. The only victim of these proxies among global powers have been people of the
region who are facing miseries of the war more than anyone else. The collateral damage in the
form of devastated infrastructure and homelessness caused millions to flee their homes and
live of life misery in refugee’s camps. With an evolving multipolar world where the US is wary of
growing Chinese economic reach out in the world, Russia is realigning itself in the world’s
realpolitik, and India is trying to maintain its regional hegemony by intimidating its neighbors, it
is need of the hour for Iran and the US to accommodate peace instead of giving rise to a conflict
and providing avenues for a new world war.