Robert Kagan, one of the United States’ most prominent neoconservative voices and a long-time pro-Israel hawk, has warned that Washington is heading towards "total defeat" in its war on Iran - a setback he says “can neither be repaired nor ignored”.
Writing inThe Atlantic, Kagan said the damage inflicted by the conflict cannot be reversed. "There will be no return to the status quo ante, no ultimate American triumph that will undo or overcome the harm done,"he concluded bleakly.
Kagan, who co-founded the neoconservative think tankProject for the New American Centuryin 1997, helped shape a political current that pushed the US to project military power globally.
That doctrine culminated in the 2003 invasion of Iraq and deeply influenced the George W. Bush administration.
He remainedclosely tied to that policy ecosystem, including through his wife, Victoria Nuland, who served as an advisor to the arch neoconservative Vice President Dick Cheney. For years, Kagan championed US interventionism - making his stark warning about the current war all the more striking.
In his analysis, Kagan argued that control over the Strait of Hormuz has fundamentally shifted the balance of power.
"With control of the strait, Iran emerges as the key player in the region and one of the key players in the world,"Kagan noted.
He added that the war has not only strengthened rivals such as China and Russia but has also eroded Washington’s global standing.
"Far from demonstrating American prowess, as supporters of the war have repeatedly claimed, the conflict has revealed an America that is unreliable and incapable of finishing what it started. That is going to set off a chain reaction around the world as friends and foes adjust to America's failure," he said.
Kagan warned that US President Donald Trump now has limited options to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting Washington may have exhausted its leverage.
Source: ZeroHedge News
