Democracy Dies in Darkness

The delusions behind Biden’s plan for Middle East peace

There’s a yawning gap between President Biden’s grand vision for the Middle East and the realities on the ground.

Analysis by
Columnist
May 1, 2024 at 12:00 a.m. EDT
6 min

You’re reading an excerpt from the Today’s WorldView newsletter. Sign up to get the rest free, including news from around the globe and interesting ideas and opinions to know, sent to your inbox every weekday.

On the face of it, President Biden’s grand vision for the Middle East makes plenty of sense. Israel, an American ally and beneficiary of many billions of dollars in U.S. military aid, would see its regional security fears quelled through an overt set of alliances with some of its Arab neighbors. Those Arab states, mostly ruled by Sunni monarchs, would reap the dividends of a closer relationship with a country known for its high-tech sector and cutting-edge defense industries. Iran, an antagonist for all these parties, would find its reach and ambitions checked by an interwoven thicket of foes.