In the ornate halls of Riyadh last week, amid a convergence of global business and political elites, President Donald Trump made headlines not merely for his presence, but for a forceful critique of American foreign policy and a radical shift in approach to the Middle East. “In the end, the so-called nation-builders wrecked far more nations than they built,” Trump declared, to a room that soon erupted in applause. In a region long plagued by external interventions and ideological fault lines, Trump’s message – however politically charged – struck a chord with regional stakeholders hoping for a reorientation of priorities.

More than just a rhetorical maneuver, Trump’s speech and associated diplomatic gestures suggest the emergence of a fundamentally different US strategy in the Middle East – one that, if pursued, could mark a historic realignment. But it is also a moment precariously balanced. Trump’s ambitions may very well be thwarted by long-standing hostilities, entrenched interests, and the unresolved agony of the Gaza crisis.

Trump’s foreign policy doctrine, often summarized by the slogan “peace through strength,” is deeply rooted in a belief in strong deterrence but also in grand deals. During his first term, Trump’s personal diplomacy with adversaries such as North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and Russia’s Vladimir Putin signaled a preference for dialogue over endless conflict, even if the outcomes were often inconclusive. The Abraham Accords, however, stood out as a concrete achievement – a normalization framework that brought Israel closer to several Arab states.

Now, Trump appears to be aiming for something even more ambitious: a........

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