The war with Iran is not just another “war in the Middle East“, writes Der Spiegel. It is the latest example of how the world is spinning out of control.
Since the beginning of the year, Trump has dealt one blow after another: the kidnapping of the Venezuelan president, threats to annex Greenland, the oil blockade of Cuba that is exhausting the country, and now the war against Iran.
In all these cases, violence is being used openly as a political tool. And not by Russia, not by China, but by the United States – a country on whose defense much of Europe had relied since 1945. The war, which was supposed to demonstrate American power, revealed within a few days how it was wounding an entire region and how its consequences extended all the way to Europe.
In just a few days, the Trump administration offered a staggering number of shifting justifications for entering the war.
First, it was about Iran’s nuclear program. Then it was about liberating the Iranian people. Then it was about regime change. Then it was about a “holy war” against Islamism again.
At one point, Trump even said he would settle for an undemocratic religious ruler in Tehran if he was “good” to the United States and Israel.
If the answer to the question of the purpose of the war changes depending on the day of the week, that’s not strategic uncertainty. It’s a lack of a plan. And that is not the only, or perhaps even the main, problem.
Experts believe that this war violates international law. However, a war that violates international law but has a clear purpose can at least end. A war without a clear purpose risks escalating. That is exactly what is happening now.