I have a new piece in The Boston Globe on Trump’s Middle East successes and why he seems to do a particularly good job in that region of the world. As always, you can pay for it over there or over here. Underneath the article below, I’ll add some additional thoughts. Let me take this opportunity to also recommend that people sign up for the Globe’s Substack page, where you can get all the op-eds, including mine. The two most popular articles there right now are by me and Timothy Snyder, which I find funny.
President Trump has been disastrous for America’s relationships with many of its allies across the globe. Yet he has been successful in the area of the world that most befuddled previous presidents: the Middle East.
This was demonstrated once again last week, when Trump welcomed President Ahmed al-Sharaa of Syria to the White House and announced that he would be brought into the coalition fighting the Islamic State.
The reason Trump has succeeded in the Arab world is unlikely to satisfy his biggest fans or most virulent critics. His achievements are due to traits that are considered major character flaws in other contexts.
