Donald Trump's Politics in Conflicts between US and Iran

Abqaiq and Khurais strikes on the oil processing facilities in Saudi Arabia likely represent the latest in a pattern of actions by the Islamic Republic of Iran to escalate tensions in the Persian Gulf. and the impact of this attack has not just been felt locally. After Iran fired 22 missiles at Iraq military bases attached to American troops, the Iranian foreign minister tweeted saying they had done ‘enough vengeance’ on the United States, and that they had no interest in fighting back. Iran answers Iran’s assassination of Iranian general Qasem Suleimani, who they acknowledge is a respected official who contributed greatly to the destruction of Isis in Syria, but is considered a US terrorist. Last night, US President Donald Trump announced that they would not continue the attacks and instead impose economic sanctions that would destabilize the Iranian economy. Some hoped that the exchange of violence might not be there. Some overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Middle East seem to be breathing deeply because of this.

The Filipinos in Saudi Arabia seem to have been beaten by thorns in the heart. ‘In my opinion it’s not over yet … There could be something bigger that will happen … Not so long ago, the situation was too unpredictable With half of Saudi oil output halted – around 6% of total world production – global fuel oil prices have spiked. Many markets are spooked direct culpability for the attack remains unclear. Yemeni Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility, other sources and evidence have pointed to an Iraqi source, potentially the Hashd al-Shaabi militia. And some sources inside the US government have also outright accused Iran itself. This seems unlikely, though, given Iran’s penchant for proxy activity and plausible deniability. Because of this conflict between the two powerful countries, this might also affect our very own country the Philippines and even wiped out our own country in case the world war 3 scenario might happened and declared by one of those two countries. When the drone strike was ordered by the president Donald Trump to assassinate Iran’s general, President Rodrigo Duterte plans to evacuate all of the Filipino workers between those countries and including Iraq. According to CNN news, there are over 1,600 Filipino workers in Iran and 6,000 in Iraq, many of them works at oil rigs and service industries. Because of this conflict between the United States of America and Iran, the president of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte called a special session of congress to address about the Filipino workers working in the Middle Eastern and they might get harmed and injured if one of the countries avowed a war. And Donald J. Trump said “Saudi Arabia oil supply was attacked. There is reason to believe that we know the culprit, are locked and loaded depending on verification, but are waiting to hear from the Kingdom as to who they believe was the cause of this attack, and under what terms we would proceed! For the US government, Soleimani is a terrorist and war criminal. For the Iranian regime, he was a hero, whose popularity stretched beyond regime supporters.

Arash Azizi said “a political commentator from Iran and PhD candidate of history and Middle Eastern studies at New York University. Soleimani a war criminal and opposes Khamenei’s leadership said that through conversations with his Iranian community, both in the United States and Iran, he found that a large number of people were mourning the general. Still, he thinks his popularity is exaggerated by the regime’s sources: ‘It wasn’t this national figure that everyone loved. There’s no one in the regime,’ he said. However, whether they loved or hated Soleimani, Iran is likely to have the same position when it comes to the war with the United States. The Philippines may be miles away from Baghdad airport, where Iran’s top commander Qasem Soleimani was killed in a drone strike, but a major conflict between the United States and Iran could have a direct knock-on effect on the Asian nation. That’s because hundreds of thousands of Filipinos work abroad in the Middle East and send billions of dollars home annually in the form of remittances. Following the decision of President Donald Trump to order a drone strike that killed Soleimani, the brewing tensions prompted Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to ask the country’s Congress to plan to evacuate thousands of Filipinos working in Iraq and Iran. Nevertheless, Azizi said he thinks that retribution from Iran is highly unlikely to escalate the conflict and risk reprisals by the Americans on Iranian territory itself. The possible event, that US and Iran lead to impending war, because Iranian general Qasem Soleimani assassinate by us drone and kill. That’s why Iran battle back and wanted to start war between their country Iran and us. The Iranians fire missiles at the us military bases in Iraq, and Iran are willing to fight us and wanted to start the war.

The tension between us and Iran can affect to the Filipinos working in Iran and even in the nearby country of Iran like in Saudi and Dubai. Filipinos need to face the reality of tension between us and Iran. And more the Filipinos could possibly go back to the Philippines, because Iran is more serious to attack and start the war between us and Iran. That’s why most of the Filipinos planning to go in Iran are backing out, because the tension there is more possible led to war. And most of the Filipinos now in our present society will remember and not to forget the tension and what happens between us and Iran. “In my opinion many Iranians are giving respect to the death of their Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. That’s why Iranian people are getting mad to the US even to the US President Donald trump. President Trump lead his countrymen to the possible war or allegations between their country and Iran”. The possibility of an out-of-conflict is unlikely to entice Americans either, no matter their politics. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has already issued statements calling for de-escalation. And Trump himself campaigned in 2016 to withdraw troops from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. According to recent polls, if he went to war, only about 18 per cent of Americans would support the president, making it a risky proposal in an election year. Things seem to be hot right now. Khamenei has threatened ‘forceful revenge’ and Trump is sending thousands more troops into the region. But, at the end of the day, war is probably not in the interests of either leader. The Islamic Republic has been involved in nearly 100 incidents over the past few months, targeting energy, transportation, and security infrastructure and equipment, according to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. These included attacks and seizures of a number of oil tankers in the Gulf, as well as strikes at airports, military bases, diplomatic compounds and now oil installations in Saudi Arabia. While Iran has been directly involved in some of these cases, the majority of non-state allied actors in Iraq and Yemen appear to have been involved. In the case of the attacks on Saudi oil installations, the Iranian leadership has steadfastly denied any blame, citing the attack as Houthi’s revenge against Saudi war crimes. This, combined with a general commitment to employ militant proxies, underscores Iran’s desire to create enough tension to achieve political outcomes, while avoiding the threshold that would lead to a dramatic military blow by the US and its allies. All Afghanistan and Iraq were Iran’s rivals. Soleimani’s forces have long supported the Afghan insurgency against the Taliban. Yet Iran has loathed Saddam Hussein.

So, in the run-up to the American war in Afghanistan, Soleimani shared vital intelligence with the Americans. He could have been just as useful an ally in Iraq. American diplomats in the area have seen an opportunity to ‘flip an opponent into a partner. But the opportunity was thrown away when George W. Bush listed Iran as part of his ‘Axis of Evil’ in 2002, to the shock of US diplomats. All diplomacy with Soleimani ceased that day. The general would continue to influence events in Iraq over the next two decades, often at America’s peril, and target US interests across the region with deadly force. Another opportunity for peace came in 2015, when the Obama administration negotiated a deal with Iran in exchange for lifting sanctions to limit its nuclear weapons. It was a major diplomatic victory, but when Donald Trump re-imposed sanctions, he scuttled the agreement, claiming that it did not go far enough to curb Iran’s ‘malign’ influence in the Middle East. Micro-aggressions followed back and forth, resulting in Soleimani’s death. The region awaits the Iranian response.