America’s Imperial Trap in Iran

Written by Fareed Zakaria | Originally published by Foreign Policy Magazine source | March 13, 2026

Trump’s decision to return to the Middle East echoes the strategic folly that undid Britain.1

For around 15 years, many American leaders—including all three presidents in that period—believed that the country was too deeply entangled in trying to reorder the societies of the Middle East. They felt the more pressing challenges included rebuilding America’s industrial base and confronting the rise of China. Yet here America is, once again, fighting a war to reorder a society in the greater Middle East. And like in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, this war seems unlikely to turn out quite as its proponents may hope.

Why does this keep happening?

U.S.-Iran Peace Deal

What We Do and Don’t Know About the U.S.-Iran Peace Deal
Key issues, like Iran’s nuclear program, remain unresolved.

Trump Has His Iran Deal. How Soon Until Oil Prices Come Down?

The Truce Between the U.S. and Iran Was the Easy Part

Summary

This piece discusses the historical and current context of U.S. involvement in the Middle East, highlighting the complexity and potential pitfalls of American foreign policy in Iran.