"If the ambition is regime change, the means that are being used certainly are insufficient to achieve that," Council President and CEO Leslie Vinjamuri says. "Iran has been succession planning for a very long time."
"The markets can take it for a short amount of time," Council Senior Nonresident Fellow Rachel Bronson says. "Beyond that—very difficult. Prices will increase, [and] people will feel it at home."
US President Donald Trump has called for regime change, the destruction of Iranian military capability, and the degradation of proxy groups. But an operation with multiple goals carries greater risk.
"It looks like the very motivation that led the US to enter the war in Iraq is now in play with Iran," Council Senior Nonresident Fellow Paul Poast says.
Even before the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn most of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, historic allies had begun actively exploring economic relationships with other nations.
Recent surveys show a rise in American skepticism of the Trump administration’s approach to domestic and foreign policy. The Council explores where they stand on the economy, immigration, alliances, and more.
The United States and Europe are scrambling to reform their partnership. It is an open question as to whether the transatlantic partnership can continue to be an anchor for international order as the rest of the world presses rapidly ahead.
With Washington prioritizing deal-making over competition, Beijing’s confidence is growing—and the risk of miscalculation is rising. Could China use America’s time-out from strategic competition to surpass it economically, technologically, and geopolitically?
