On close scrutiny, it would appear that there are many good reasons for Washington and Tehran to coordinate their policies in the Middle East for mutual benefit. Astute observers of the Iran nuclear deal had presumed that the JCPOA would form the foundation stone on which Iranian-American political cooperation could be built in order to advance the interests of both parties. I believe some people in the Obama administration who dealt with the Iran nuclear issue also accepted the validity of this thesis. It is unfortunate that the Trump administration, instead of building on the JCPOA to achieve broader goals in the Middle East, is undermining it by threatening to renege on it. This strategy amounts to nothing less than snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Mohammed Ayoob is a senior fellow at the Center for Global Policy and the University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of International Relations at Michigan State University.

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