Trump’s Three Steps to Middle East Peace

Eliminating Iran’s nuclear weapons is the first step in achieving Middle East peace, and President Trump can do it: no more relying on Iran’s empty promises or baseless hope as to their intentions. Similar to Trump’s decisive action in authorizing the elimination of Iran’s General of the elite Quds Forces, Qassem Soleimani, during his first term in 2020, Trump must act to neutralize Iran’s weapons of mass destruction promptly in his second term.

President Trump, during his previous administration, exemplified a profound commitment to the United States’ alliance with Israel through several significant actions. He relocated the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, recognized Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights, maintained aid to ally Israel while imposing sanctions on adversarial Iran, and facilitated Middle East peace through the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations with the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. In his second term, Trump can achieve what has eluded his predecessors: enduring and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.

This aspiration can be realized through three historic and positively impactful initiatives:

1. Neutralizing the Iranian Nuclear Threat: A decisive elimination of Iran’s threatening nuclear facilities is essential to prevent the radical and irrational leadership of the mullahs and Ayatollahs from jeopardizing global security with weapons of mass destruction.
2. Expanding the Abraham Accords: The finalization of a peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, along with other progressive Muslim nations yearning for peace and prosperity for their populations and a brighter future for all.
3. Achieving the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Plan: The conclusion of the Israeli-Palestinian 2020 Trump Peace Plan that addresses the longstanding conflict, permits Israel to annex the strategic Area C of the West Bank, including the Jordan Valley and establishes a limited two-state solution allowing Palestinians to live freely and with dignity while ensuring peace and security for Israel.

Trump is widely recognized for his exceptional negotiation skills, as illustrated in his renowned book, The Art of the Deal, alongside his capacity for ambitious vision and execution. He possesses the potential to advance efforts toward achieving meaningful Middle East peace while countering the Iranian regime by ceasing the ongoing game of chicken with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and decisively neutralizing the nuclear threat.

To attain peace, Trump, as a prerequisite, must directly and boldly confront the terrorist and nuclear threat posed by Iran. Iran was pivotal in orchestrating the October 7 attack on Israel, which has precipitated over a year of conflict. Furthermore, Iran has consistently been a destabilizing force in the Middle East and beyond, engaging in jihadist terrorism, issuing threats against Israel, chanting “Death to America,” and illicitly developing nuclear weapons following the Iranian revolution of 1979. Recent reports from the Wall Street Journal have also revealed an Iranian plot aimed at assassinating Trump, underscoring the personal stakes involved.

Iran is recognized as the foremost state sponsor of terrorism globally, with its radical Islamic leadership aspiring to re-establish a global Shiite caliphate governed by Sharia law, suppressing competition from the world’s majority Sunni Muslims, and targeting the “Zionist Entity” (the democratic State of Israel), the United States, and the rest of Western civilization, which they deem decadent and immoral infidels. Thus, Iran cannot be regarded as a rational actor, and its potential possession of nuclear weapons constitutes a substantial threat to global peace and stability.

In addition to Iran’s dissemination of hatred and violence through terrorist proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and various Shiite terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq, the nation has also launched intercontinental ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones at Israel. These elements comprise a critical aspect of the Axis of Evil, alongside Russia and North Korea.

Trump has a documented history of confronting the Iranian regime. During his previous term (2016-2020), he appropriately terminated the ineffective Iran Nuclear Agreement that would have allowed Iran a legitimate pathway to nuclear armament. Furthermore, he implemented a “Maximum Pressure” strategy on Iran, employing sanctions to curtail the flow of oil revenues that finance global terrorism. In his prospective second term as president, Trump possesses a unique opportunity to undertake monumental actions aimed at preventing the Iranian regime from continuing its perilous trajectory.

Trump previously articulated that Israel should target Iran’s nuclear facilities in response to their missile attack against Israel on October 1. Nevertheless, as Trump adheres to a philosophy of strength through deterrence and seeks to establish the peace “Deal of the Century,” the neutralization of Iran’s nuclear capabilities is a necessary precondition.

While Israel maintains a robust and capable military, it is only the United States that currently possesses long-range strategic stealth bombers capable of deploying the GBU-57 “Massive Ordnance Penetrator” (commonly referred to as “Bunker Busters”), essential for targeting Iran’s extensively fortified nuclear installations. Additionally, the United States boasts the world’s most formidable Navy, with aircraft carrier groups serving as forward operating bases capable of projecting power and engaging adversaries on a global scale.

Under President Trump’s leadership, the United States not only holds the capability but also the potential to finally eradicate the Iranian nuclear threat, subsequently expanding the Abraham Accords toward establishing peace with both Saudi Arabia and the Palestinians, and potentially numerous other Muslim nations. Should President Trump successfully realize these objectives, he will be remembered not only as the individual who resolved one of the world’s most complex challenges concerning Middle East peace but also as one of history’s most formidable leaders.