As military action between the United States and Iran appears to be winding down and negotiations continue, the remaining issues are frustrating commentators eager to spin this as another example of endless conflict.

However, when measured by military capability, economic leverage, strategic positioning and long-term deterrence, the outcome is clear. America dramatically weakened one of the world’s most dangerous and unpredictable regimes and secured a decisive victory.

Iran enters this next phase diminished, exposed and with fewer options than at any point in history.

For decades, the Iranian people have lived under a government that fears freedom above all else. It fears free speech, dissent and the powerful human desire to assemble publicly and demand dignity, truth and self-government.

Brave Iranian citizens took to the streets calling for liberty, only to be met with bullets, prison cells, torture and death. Thousands of protesters have been beaten, arrested and killed for exercising rights Americans consider foundational. When a government fears the voices of its own people, it reveals its weakness. A government that murders its citizens for speaking the truth is not a government acting from confidence. It is a regime fighting for survival.

We have also seen what happens when weakness is mistaken for diplomacy. The previous nuclear deal was hardly a deal at all. Iran received cash up front, sanctions relief, and economic breathing room. In return, the world got delays, loopholes and false promises. Centrifuges were spinning while the ink on the deal was drying. Missile and drone stockpiles grew as money flowed to terrorist proxies across the Middle East. As violations occurred, the strongest response the U.S. and its allies could often muster was unenforced sanctions that amounted to little more than a strongly worded letter.

The situation is different today because American leadership is different.

Iran is not negotiating from strength. Its naval capabilities have been devastated. Its conventional military power has been severely degraded. Its ability to build or launch missiles has been sharply constrained. Its regional deterrence has been exposed as weaker than advertised. Most importantly, Iran cannot sell one drop of oil to the global market without the U.S. allowing it, directly or indirectly, through enforcement decisions.

Iran’s old playbook depended on leverage, time and an American leadership unwilling to impose meaningful consequences. The regime’s ability to manipulate negotiations has been dramatically reduced because the leverage it once relied upon is largely gone.

That is why claims that Iran somehow “won” are detached from reality. Iran lost military capacity, strategic leverage, economic flexibility and the illusion of invulnerability.

Many of Iran’s senior leaders and military planners are gone. What remains is hardly a confident regional power; rather, it is a junior varsity team suddenly forced onto the field after the starters have been taken out. Many of those still in power are effectively operating in survival mode, hiding, fully aware that further escalation could accelerate the regime’s collapse.

Meanwhile, the U.S. proved that American power still matters when it is used decisively. Deterrence is built when adversaries believe the U.S. is willing to act and capable of imposing real consequences, and that message was clearly delivered. Many countries in the region appear to respect the U.S. lead.

Iran will not become a nuclear power. The only question is how the regime chooses to arrive at that outcome. Whether through negotiation, sustained economic strangulation, or military action, if necessary, the objective remains non-negotiable that a nuclear Iran is unacceptable.

Critics will point to higher gas prices or market volatility. They will argue this was a conflict nobody wanted or somehow a war of choice. No rational person wants war. However, there is something far more dangerous than higher gas prices, and that is a nuclear Iran. A nuclear Iran would destabilize the global order, embolden terrorist networks, trigger a regional arms race, threaten international shipping lanes, and place one of the world’s most radical regimes under a nuclear umbrella.

What is especially troubling is watching American politicians effectively amplify Iranian propaganda for domestic political gain. Their obsession with opposing President Donald Trump has become so intense that they appear willing to undermine America’s negotiating position simply to score political points. Some seem more comfortable attacking American strength than confronting a regime that funds terrorism, suppresses free speech and murders dissidents. That should concern every American.

The Iranian people deserve freedom. The world needs security. And the regime in Tehran now faces the reality of enforced accountability. As the fighting slows and diplomacy continues, it is obvious that America, the region, the world and the Iranian people all share victory. The Iranian regime must comply or accept severe consequences.

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ABOUT THE WRITER

Shaun McCutcheon is a free-speech advocate and the founder of Multipolar. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

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