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President Donald Trump holds up a copy of a 2025 National Trade Estimate Report as he speaks at an event at the White House on April 2, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)
Middle East
Middle East
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(Screenshot via Newsmax)
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President Donald Trump addresses a House Republican retreat on January 6, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)
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(What Really Matters Logo)
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A protester flashes victory signs as traffic slows during demonstrations in Hamedan, Iran, on January 1, 2026. The demonstrations erupted after shopkeepers in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar shut their businesses to protest the sharp fall of Iran’s currency and worsening economic conditions. (Getty Images)
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An F-35C Lightning II launches from the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln on October 2, 2025, in the Pacific Ocean. (US Navy)
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(Screenshot via Fox News)
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei speaks speaks in Tehran, Iran on January 03, 2026. (Photo by IRANIAN LEADER PRESS OFFICE/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Two Iran-made ballistic missiles are displayed at Azadi Square in Tehran, Iran, on February 10, 2025. (Getty Images)
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President Donald Trump arrives on stage during a town hall campaign event at the Lancaster County Convention Center on October 20, 2024, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. (Getty Images)
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(Screenshot via Fox News)
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(School of War)
Experts
James Barnett
Research Fellow
Michael Doran
Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
