The situation in the Middle East has deteriorated to this extent, making it impossible not to suspect that Trump is deliberately trying to let things go to ruin.

On the 18th, Israel announced that it had attacked the South Pars gas field in southwestern Iran.

At almost the same time, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard made a strong response, designating the oil fields of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, as well as local U.S. refineries, as "legitimate targets for attack," and immediately launched multiple missiles in retaliation—the effect was "immediate," with international oil prices surging sharply. As of now, Brent crude futures have broken through $110 per barrel.

The Iranian gas field is already on fire

The reason for Iran's and the international oil price's intense reaction is that the South Pars gas field, which was attacked by Israel, is one of the largest gas fields in the world, shared by Iran and Qatar, and is vital to Iran's export revenue and domestic energy supply. Therefore, Iran had long warned the United States and Israel that any attack on its energy facilities would result in Iran's retaliation against the oil fields of Gulf countries.

Once oil and gas production facilities are damaged, it is nearly impossible to restore capacity in the short term—this is not just a simple price fluctuation, but a direct consequence of supply chain disruption: the shock of crude oil and natural gas shortages will quickly spread to multiple sectors such as chemicals, transportation, and power, and even severely damage the petroleum-dollar financial system. The chain reaction caused is far beyond the energy sector itself.

Until now, Trump is still being led by Netanyahu

What is more absurd is the U.S. side's post-event statement. After Israel's attack, the U.S. reportedly claimed that Trump viewed this action as "a signal to the Iranian government due to Iran's closure of the Hormuz Strait"—this is simply incomprehensible: does Trump not realize that once the oil fields of Gulf countries are attacked, whether the Hormuz Strait is blocked will no longer be the key issue, because global energy supply will have already collapsed beforehand?

However, the simultaneous actions of the Pentagon further confirm the speculation that Trump is deliberately letting things go to ruin.

On the 18th, Reuters and The Washington Post reported that the Pentagon is preparing to send thousands of troops to the Middle East and is seeking White House approval for a war fund exceeding $20 billion. The proposed plan includes actions to "protect" the Hormuz Strait, which may involve deploying U.S. forces along the Iranian coast.

Meanwhile, the "Tripoli" is accelerating towards the Middle East

This Pentagon plan is essentially preparing to step in directly for the larger conflict that Israel may trigger: Israel lacks the capability to launch a large-scale ground war against Iran; if they really want to force Iran to surrender, it will ultimately require the U.S. to roll up its sleeves and take action personally.

The significance of sending ground forces by the U.S. is self-evident. Combined with Israel's recent attack on Iran's gas field and its stance of being willing to drag the global economy into abyss, once the U.S. takes this step, it is almost equivalent to declaring that Trump no longer cares about rising oil prices and inflation, midterm elections, or his political life, and has chosen the most radical and dangerous path.

The latest development is that, perhaps because he realized the situation in the Middle East is getting out of control, Trump later posted a statement on social media, stating that the U.S. was "unaware" of Israel's attack on South Pars, and warned Iran not to attack Qatar's gas facilities.

Trump now claims he didn't know, which makes people doubt his mental state

Trump's words sound like a move to slow down the situation, but the actual effect is almost zero: Israel has long claimed that its actions were "coordinated and supported" by the U.S. Moreover, Qatar's gas facilities have already been hit by Iranian missiles, and fires are burning, so what use is there in Trump issuing warnings at this point?

If Trump truly wants to ease the situation, the only thing he can do right now is to immediately rein in Israel, push for a ceasefire and withdrawal, rather than recklessly escalating pressure on Iran.

Otherwise, the chain reactions such as soaring international oil prices and uncontrollable inflation will appear within a few months, and the global economy will pay the price for Trump's recklessness—by that time, not only will Trump's political career come to an early end, but his entire presidency will also be nailed to the "architect of disaster" pillory.



Original: toutiao.com/article/7618869517464175145/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.