Afrasianet - Mazen Al Najjar - Iran is the biggest winner in the "epic rage." Trump is the biggest loser. The dilemma is that Trump's penchant for making up a reality of his own often makes him not admit his mistake or negotiate a way out of the catastrophe of his most recent one.
Trump's catastrophic miscalculation in Iran and his refusal to acknowledge the inevitability of defeat is pushing the planet toward a global depression and ensuring the suffering and misery of millions.
America's newest swamps in the Middle East resemble its old swamps.
The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were also the result of a gross misreading of adversaries, a catastrophic failure to understand the limits of imperial power, and the absence of any clear strategy. It inflates the profits of the war industry, squanders billions of dollars of public funds, alienates allies, and undermines America's influence and prestige on the world.
According to veteran journalist Chris Hedges, it is a dying empire, ruled by incompetent corrupt people, blinded by militarism and arrogance. It is incapable of understanding the world around it. They are caught in a dead-out predicament – as in Iraq, Afghanistan and before them Vietnam – as military adventures accelerate and exacerbate their own losses.
The war on Iran marks another chapter of rapid and eventual deadly decline.
No good American way out
Iran's 10-point proposal for a temporary ceasefire—brokered by Pakistan and presented to the United States 40 days after the war began—is a condition of American surrender.
It calls for an end to U.S. and Israeli attacks in Iran and Lebanon. It calls for the removal of U.S. military bases and installations in the region, and consolidates Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz.
It refuses to abandon uranium enrichment. It demands the lifting of sanctions, an end to resolutions passed by the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency against Iran, the release of frozen assets ($100 billion) and the payment of reparations for US and Israeli attacks.
These demands are a grave insult that America and Israel cannot accept.
Hours after Iran presented its proposal, Israel launched a devastating air attack on Lebanon to thwart any agreement. In ten minutes, the attack included bombing of downtown Beirut and across Lebanon, with the participation of 50 fighter jets, 108 airstrikes, and 160 bombs, killing 350 people and wounding thousands.
The blitzkrieg and unjustified Black Wednesday massacre is a gruesome reminder that Israel has no intention of allowing the war to end. With the United States unwilling to admit defeat and Israel's thirst for blood, the situation is dire.
Later, Iran submitted an updated proposal, which Trump considered "completely unacceptable."
Iran, which controls the Strait of Hormuz, can wait. The longer the blockade of navigation through a strait through which 20 percent of the world's oil and gas flows passes, the more damage will be done to the global economy.
There is no good way out for the United States. The intransigence of the Trump administration and Israel's insistence on resuming its attacks on Iran ensure that the world economy slides into recession.
Iran is the biggest winner
Iran's civilian and economic infrastructure has suffered heavy losses, including residential areas, schools, universities, health centers, police stations, churches, synagogues, power and desalination plants, steel and pharmaceutical plants, as well as military assets. It has been assassinated by its top political and military leaders. However, no goal for America and Israel has been achieved.
Hedges notes that Iran's new leadership, which is close to the Revolutionary Guards, is more challenging and tough than its predecessor. Iran retains control of the Strait of Hormuz and may charge up to $2 million in fees for each oil tanker. These tariffs, imposed by Iran as part of its war reparations demands, must be paid in Chinese currency, in an effort by Iran, China, and Russia to break the dollar's dominance.
Iran maintains large stockpiles of missiles, drones, and enriched uranium, which could be enriched to 90 percent in the event of another attack.
Iran is the biggest winner in the "epic rage." Trump is the biggest loser. The dilemma is that Trump's penchant for fabricating a reality of his own often makes him not admit his mistake or negotiate a way out of the catastrophe of his most recent one.
Trump, without congressional approval, wasted at least $29 billion on the war, according to the Pentagon, while Steven Semler's analysis puts the figure closer to $72 billion.
The human toll is already heavy. The US and Israeli airstrikes have resulted in more than 3,300 Iranian civilian martyrs, including more than 221 children. More than three million Iranians and more than a million Lebanese have been displaced by Israel's continuous bombardment and genocide in southern Lebanon. There are more than two million Palestinians displaced by the genocide in Gaza, along with 1,100 martyrs and 40,000 displaced Palestinians in the West Bank.
Towards a global recession
As the war continues, the World Bank expects a 31 percent increase in the cost of Gulf nitrogen fertilizers passing through the Strait of Hormuz this year, which will lead to even higher food prices. Shortages are already disrupting manufacturing and production globally. Fragile and interconnected global supply chains are collapsing. This economic system, as the Iran war has shown, is easy to destroy, and it is very difficult to restore.
Asian countries are suffering from severe fuel shortages and supply disruptions, as their countries face a rush to buy and ration consumption at gas stations. They are scrambling to secure alternative sources of crude oil and fuel. Japan relies on Gulf oil for 95 percent of its imports and has resorted to strategic reserves since the war began.
Consequently, higher LNG prices increased the prices of cooking fuel by 7% for domestic use in India and by 76% in the commercial sector. Production was cut and jobs were lost in the apparel and textile sectors in India, Bangladesh and Cambodia.
Shipments of helium, aluminum, and naphtha through the Strait of Hormuz have plummeted, leading to a drop in production, including chip manufacturing, construction companies, and plastic packaging. Steel mills in India and automobiles in Japan have cut production. Tens of thousands of workers have already lost their jobs.
Asian and European airlines carry extra fuel at their airports, and the number of flights has been reduced, surcharges have been raised and jet fuel prices have doubled. The UAE, which owns sovereign wealth funds worth more than $2 trillion, has asked the United States for a "wartime financial rescue plan" after gas fields were damaged by missiles and navigation in the Strait of Hormuz were disrupted.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) states that millions of people, especially in Asia and Africa, are at risk of falling into poverty and hunger due to war.
As a net exporter of oil and natural gas, the United States has relatively escaped the global shock, although gasoline prices rose by about 40% to exceed $4.50 per gallon. The average price of diesel also rose by about 50%, exceeding $5.60 per gallon.
But the collapse of the global economy will hurt the United States sooner or later. The Trump administration is pushing for a global recession and social and political turmoil, the result of a catastrophic financial crisis.
Military Mobilization
Desperate Trump, screaming lewd threats against Iran on social media, writing: "Open the dreaded Strait of Hormuz, you crazy bastards." He also posts AI-generated images showing the U.S. military annihilating the Iranian army. He threatened to bomb the Iranians "to go back to the Stone Age they belong to"!
He calls his critics traitors: "When the fake media says that the Iranian enemy is making military advances against us, it is a high betrayal, because it is a false claim, and even ridiculous." He stated on the "Truth Social" platform: "They are aiding and abetting the enemy!" This speech was followed by a photo of a map with the U.S. flag over Venezuela, with the caption "State 51."
Before traveling to China, Trump claimed: "Iran is completely under our control... Either we reach an agreement or we will crush them. Either way, we will win." These statements are pathetic and unbalanced, but they are also alarming, according to Hedges.
The United States is strengthening its military presence in the area, deploying the Amphibious Destroyer Group "Tripoli" to the readiness, along with the "31st Marine Expeditionary Unit" – 3,500 sailors and soldiers – transport aircraft, attack fighters, and tactical attack and defense units.
The Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and 2,500 Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit have deployed, which is equipped with F-35B Lightning stealth aircraft, MV-22B Osprey aircraft with tilting propellers, and attack helicopters. He has also sent 2,000 U.S. paratroopers to the Gulf, and is reportedly considering reinforcing these forces with an additional 10,000 troops.
Real trouble
Resuming aerial bombardment, even with a limited ground offensive, would ensure a long and costly war, achieving Israel's goal of destroying Iran into a failed state, but it would be another fatal blow to the U.S. empire.
A ground offensive on Kharg Island, 16 miles off the coast of Iran, Iran's main oil storage and export port, where 90 percent of Iran's oil exports are processed, would be a massive shock to the global economy. If U.S. forces try to occupy Iranian territory, Iran will deploy its arsenal of anti-ship cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, underwater drones, and naval mines, making any occupation deadly. America is in real trouble.
Hedges argues that managing this conflict is far beyond the capabilities of the Trump administration's fools. They would rather have global misery and destruction than admit defeat. When faced with the inevitability of the bitter truth, they will have left behind piles of corpses.
The tragedy is not in the death of an unfortunate empire, but in the fact that the empire overthrows the fate of so many innocent people with it.
