Vice President JD Vance credited President Donald Trump's decisive leadership and "America first" strategy for avoiding another prolonged conflict in the Middle East, highlighting the administration's success in brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, Blaze Media reported.
Vance offered rare insight this week into the strategic thinking behind the recent U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Iran, emphasizing the restraint and clarity Trump demonstrated in resolving what could have become a major military entanglement.
Speaking with Blaze TV host Steve Deace on Tuesday, Vance pointed to the president's refusal to repeat what he described as the missteps of previous U.S. administrations in the region. Trump dodged the "bad decision" his predecessors made in the Middle East, Vance said.
Vance, who served as a Marine in Iraq in 2005, reflected on how past U.S. military interventions suffered from what he called "mission creep." He explained that he "always wondered kind of what went wrong" and that the recent episode in the region strengthened his understanding that the answer is "that we allowed mission creep. In other words, we started with one mission, and then it turned into another mission, and it turned into another mission."
That cycle, Vance noticed, contributed to America's long and costly wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In contrast, he said Trump's foreign policy avoided that trap by remaining focused and outcome-driven.
Tensions between Israel and Iran escalated earlier this month, culminating in a series of air and drone strikes between the two countries. But the Trump administration, working in coordination with Qatar, announced a ceasefire late Monday that appeared to bring a temporary halt to hostilities. After a bit of back and forth post announcement, by Tuesday afternoon, attacks had ceased in both directions.
Vance praised the result, attributing it to Trump's commitment to prioritizing U.S. interests. He said this kind of leadership marks a significant departure from the foreign policy establishment's previous failed approaches in the region.
Still, challenges remain. Trump publicly expressed frustration over Israeli military actions that occurred shortly after the ceasefire was announced. Speaking to reporters on the White House South Lawn before departing for a NATO summit, Trump said, "Iran violated the ceasefire, but Israel violated it too. So I'm not happy with them. I'm not happy with Iran either. But I'm really unhappy if Israel is going out this morning."
"I've got to get Israel to calm down," Trump continued. "Israel, as soon as we made the deal, they came out and dropped a load of bombs, the likes of which I've never seen before."
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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