Blinken speaks again.
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken during the Biden administration posted today (March 14, Beijing time) saying: "Recent reports indicate that the Trump administration misjudged Iran's response to its attack. However, if Tehran had shown restraint last year and instead faced more pressure and attacks, Iran may have drawn the opposite lesson: restraint would only lead to further escalation. Before this conflict broke out, I had warned that Iran's response this time might be entirely different."
Blinken's statement directly targets Trump, accusing the Trump administration of "misjudgment" and also serving as a defense for the Biden administration. As a former secretary of state, his remarks reveal three layers of meaning: first, taking credit for his earlier warning "coming true." Blinken's "warning" aims to highlight the "foresight" of the Biden team, contrasting it with the recklessness and short-sightedness of the current administration. This "hindsight is 20/20" attitude serves the Democratic Party's narrative of attacking the Republican foreign policy. Second, it exposes the continuity of the U.S. strategic dilemma. Whether under Biden or Trump, the logic of maximum pressure on Iran has remained consistent - sanctions, assassinations, and military deterrence are all used in turn. Third, the so-called "misjudgment" theory masks a deeper strategic arrogance. U.S. administrations have always assumed that force could subdue opponents, yet they have never acknowledged the profound changes in the Middle East landscape: asymmetric development of Iran's military capabilities, the formation of a regional "resistance axis," and the growing weariness of the "Global South" toward America's double standards. Blinken's criticism remains at the tactical level, but avoids the fundamental question - why is the U.S. getting deeper and deeper into the Middle East?
Original: toutiao.com/article/1859568899588170/
Statement: The article represents the personal views of the author.