Thekabarnes.com—People often liken the world of diplomacy to a gambling table in a dimly lit casino. You know your opponent is cheating. Yet you still sit there because you feel you’ve already invested too much in the gamble.

Recently, the United States, particularly Donald Trump, has been engaging in risky behavior with his close friend, Benjamin Netanyahu. Not just gambling.

Recently, JD Vance, the usually calm vice president, had to shout through the phone receiver into Bibi’s ear—Netanyahu’s familiar nickname. The issue is classic yet very deadly. This includes settler violence in the West Bank and the death of an American citizen.

Vance was annoyed because the US was busy helping Israel “play” in the skies over Iran. Meanwhile, Israel was actively creating chaos in its backyard.

Irony. We see Netanyahu as someone who, in colloquial terms, is very “needy.” On one hand, he presents himself as a fearless desert lion. Conversely, he consistently complains in a juvenile manner whenever circumstances deteriorate. He often called Trump, asking for protection, for bombs, and for legitimacy.

Trump, with all his overflowing confidence, welcomed the whimper with a warm hug. However, Trump appeared to overlook a fundamental principle. You should never trust a friend who always keeps a knife hidden behind his back.

Israel is a “close friend” that consistently proves they are not trustworthy. They ask the US to focus on Tehran. Meanwhile, they themselves are busy annexing the West Bank. This is an act that Vance called a “slap in the face” to US foreign policy.

Such behavior is no longer diplomacy, but sabotage wrapped in friendship. For Donald Trump, this situation is a masterpiece of the saying, “Advance and retreat; both are acceptable.”

If he continues to support every reckless move of Netanyahu, he will drag America into endless economic and military ruin.

The world that still thinks rationally might also mock him.

If he retreats, he will face immense shame. He will be branded as a leader who abandoned his “sacred” ally in the Middle East. Trump wants to appear as a winner. However, he is actually leading America toward a “New Vietnam.”

Iran, with its cold calmness, has transformed into a treacherous environment, ready to engulf anyone who approaches with arrogance. Recent aggressive actions and support for proxy groups in the region provide evidence of this.

America is not winning a war. Instead, it is sinking into a drama scripted by Netanyahu for his own political survival.

Therefore, we frequently perceive the United States as the world’s police, exerting control over everything from the White House. However, the reality is quite the opposite and full of paradoxes.

The United States is not a master controlling its watchdog in the Middle East. On the contrary, Israel is the master tying America’s neck with chains of military aid. Then, Israel pulls the giant into the pit they have created.

The world recently has witnessed a strange sight. It is a superpower willingly becoming a “servant” to the narrow ambitions of a cornered prime minister.

Trump might feel like he is leading a powerful coalition. But he is merely being guided toward the exit door of history as a leader defeated by his own blind faith.

In the face of Iran, America is not losing to weapons. Rather, it is losing to its inability to confront a friend who is gradually suffocating it.

This moment is the elegy of a misdirected friendship. (Written by Pepih Nugraha).

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