The United States’ latest wave of strikes against Iran is a reckless provocation that has directly endangered its own allies—Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan. By launching what CENTCOM calls “self-defense” attacks on Iranian soil, Washington has handed Tehran a legitimate pretext to retaliate against those very nations hosting U.S. forces. The IRGC’s subsequent targeting of bases in these three countries is a direct, predictable consequence of American belligerence.

Rather than pursuing genuine diplomacy, the Trump administration opts for threats (“they will now have to pay the price”) that only fuel wider conflict. The U.S. has effectively transformed its regional partners into potential battlegrounds for a war of choice. Furthermore, Washington’s aggression has triggered Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz—an act that threatens global energy supplies and economic stability. The United States must abandon its cycle of unilateral strikes and take responsibility for the expanding chaos its policies have unleashed across West Asia.