The simmering conflict between Israel and Iran is more than a geopolitric flash point – it reflects a historic rivalry that goes back almost 2500 years. When the Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great conquered Babylon in 539 BC, it gave a decree that allowed Jewish prisoners to return and to rebuild the temple of Jerusalem. Although that law was considered benevolent, it also placed Persia in the center of the civilization balance of the region. Since then, Persia and Israel have often occupied opposing power poles in the middle.
Nowadays that long arch has reached a dangerous top. There is a direct Israel -iran confrontation underway and President Trump seems ready to commit American troops. Bomber task forces and carriers groups are in position and speculation is assembling that America will launch a strike against Fordow – the most safe nuclear facility of Iran. If such a strike occurs, it must be accurate and modest. Although Iran’s nuclear threat must be coordinated, the strategic focus of America must remain stuck with the greatest rival: China.
Why we now have to destroy the nuclear facility of Iran
Old identity, modern commitment
Iran’s self-perception is steeped in his Persian heritage-a deep cultural identity that not only sees itself as a nation, but as a civilization anchor of the region. Although the Islamic Republic has distanced itself from pre-Islamic monarchy, it still evokes the legacy of Persian greatness. This nourishes a deep -rooted image that Iran – not the Arab world or the West – is the rightful power broker of the middle -east.
That mentality helps to explain Iran’s nuclear ambition. The regime believes that regional leadership and deterrence demand atomic capacity. This view is not only ideological – it is strategic, historical and, in the eyes of Tehran, alone.
Fordow: The Nuclear Redoute
The Cease Fuel enrichment installation is buried deeply – some 80 meters under the mountain Alvand, near Qom. It houses IR-6 centrifuges and is protected from conventional strikes. While Israel has carried out attacks on Natanz and Esfahan, Fordow remains intact – partly because only the United States GBU-57A/B “Massive Ordnance Penetrator” able to reach it.
How closed was Iran on a nuclear weapon before the strike of Israel on Tehran?
If the US acts, it must be to eliminate Fordow and considerably restore the breakout timeline of Iran. But it has to do this with clear limits.
Iran will go back
Nobody should assume that Iran will capitulate after a single strike – even a successful one. Ayatollah Khamenei has already warned: “The battle has just begun.” Iran retains the means to take revenge: proxy militia, ballistic missiles, cyber warfare and navy stroups that are willing to hit American assets and to disturb oil flows in the Strait of Hormuz. The revolutionary guards and household intelligence devices of the regime are loyal and brutal – so hope for a popular uprising in the aftermath of a strike, for the time being is unrealistic.
That is why a military operation should not be seen as a war run, but as a time -changing maneuver.
Strategic discipline: Follow the leadership of Israel
The primary goal of Israel is not a change in regime, but to deny Iran’s nuclear arms capacity. Israeli ambassador Yechiel Leiter recently stated: “The entire operation … must really be completed with the elimination of Fordow.” That clear, narrow mission should also be the American goal.
Israel’s war with Iran is a worldwide flash point. America must lead before it spreads
America should support Israel with logistics, supervision, ammunition and deterrence – but avoid providing itself in a broader regional war. Each strike must be followed by verifiable evidence – seismic signatures, ISR evidence and ideally IAEA confirmation – that Fordow is unusable. Without the mission of strategic and political clarity.
China remains the pacing threat
All the while the United States must remember this: Iran is a regional actor with a limited worldwide reach. China is a peer competitor with global ambition. The American national defense strategy has repeatedly identified China as the Pacing threat For us worldwide – in technology, trade, cyber and military power.
XI Jinping PLEASE PLEASE. A long -term American entanglement in the middle -east is exactly the kind of strategic distraction that China hopes for. The Indo-Pacific remains the theater where the future of America will be decided. Allowing a secondary conflict to drain our bandwidth plays directly in the hand of Beijing.
The real mission: contain, do not convert
Changing the regime in Iran is not only feasible through the air force, and it is not necessary to achieve our strategic goals. Washington must be satisfied to break down the nuclear capacity of Iran, to isolate the regime diplomatically and to strengthen its regional allies.
Defraction must be repaired by credible action-not open intervention. Allow the US to strike, if necessary, but stay no longer than required. Let Fordow fall, but let the American strategy remain focused on China.
Click here for more the opinion of Fox News
Consequences of inactivity
The alternative – not doing anything – has serious implications. A nuclear Iran would shift power relationships, encourage his proxies and cause proliferation in Saudi Aarabia, Egypt and Turkey. Tehran would keep Tel Aviv hostage, threaten American bases and cancel the American deterrence. Inactivity sends a signal: American red lines are negotiable. That would wrinkle far beyond the center.
Conclusion
Iran’s nuclear ambition is not only rooted in military calculus, but in a civilization memory – one that throws Iran as the heir of the regional dominance of Persia. Israel, born of exile and forged in conflict, sees his survival at stake. The United States must support his ally – but on clearly defined conditions.
Click here to get the Fox News app
We can eliminate Fordow. We can pass Iran’s reaction. But we should not lose sight of the larger match. The future of America will not be formed by the mountains of Qom, but by the islands of the South Chinese Sea.
Let the history remember: we hit hard, struck smart and stayed focused. Fordow can fall – but our eyes must stay on China.
Click here to Van Robert Maginnis
