President Trump's policies in the Middle East are separating out who stands for what and with whom in that tumultuous region. It is not yet clear whether Trump's dramatic initiatives will work and serve American interests and the cause of peace. But one thing that can be said already is that moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, forging bonds with Persian Gulf leaders, and working with Iraq's military against the Islamic State all help put U.S. policy on a footing of truth rather than make-believe, which is reason to celebrate.
Moving the embassy fulfills the promise Trump and his predecessors all made. Keeping promises is a good thing, both in establishing American credibility, and simply because honesty and reliability are virtues. Trump has severed the fanciful bonds that former President Barack Obama sought to establish between the U.S. and the clerical tyranny that runs Iran. By pulling out of the nuclear deal, Trump reassures the bloc of Sunni-Arab monarchies led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that American policy toward the region is not built on the daydream that Tehran is pragmatic and could be a regional ally, rather than a country presided over by a group ideologically committed to terrorism and the domination of its neighbors.
In the Palestinian territories, Trump must act aggressively to counter the forces of disenchantment and nihilism. Hamas cannot be reasoned with, another truth Trump is making clear, but the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah and the Palestinian people require American help to build their confidence in the possibility of peace. Trump is sorting allies, good-faith actors, plausible partners, and evil regimes. He is radically disrupting the failed status quo. The results are unknowable. But there's a virtue in making the truth more evident to the world.
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