U.S. recklessness in Iran accelerates global shift toward multipolarity

Editor's note: Umair Jamal, a special commentator for CGTN, is a Qatar-based international affairs commentator and security analyst. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

For all its claims of upholding a rules-based global order, the United States' attacks on Iran have once again demonstrated Washington's contempt for international law.

There are apparent contradictions in the U.S. justifications for bombing Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump has been celebrating the bombing of a sovereign country weeks after his own Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, testified before Congress that Tehran was not building a nuclear bomb.

In recent days, IAEA Director General Rafael Gross has stated that there is no tangible proof that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon.

There is now a bitter dilemma that the U.S. and its ally Israel are facing.

The depth of distrust became appallingly visible when U.S. President Donald Trump announced a "complete and total ceasefire" between Iran and Israel on June 24. Iran responded that it would only stop attacks after Israel did first, revealing the emptiness of U.S. mediation.

A day after Trump declared Iran's nuclear programme was "completely and totally obliterated" by airstrikes, senior U.S. officials admitted they had no idea where near-weapons-grade uranium was currently located.

If Washington aimed to stop Iran's nuclear progress, it has failed. However, the attacks may lead Tehran to abandon the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) altogether and pursue nuclear weapons. This leaves the international community to salvage the treaty's credibility at a time when the U.S. is teetering on the brink of abandoning it by attacking its members. 

Anyhow, the attacks on Iran have only undermined U.S. credibility and leadership globally. Washington's credibility is increasingly eroded as the country tries to manipulate those it negotiates with while alienating others it engages.

On June 19, the White House stated that Trump would decide within the next two weeks whether Washington would get involved in Israel's bombing campaign against Iran. The U.S. also suggested there was still room for dialogue. But when Iran's foreign minister reached out to talk to European leaders to set the stage for talks, the country was directly bombed by the U.S., effectively killing the initiative. At this point, Iran and other regional players need to reflect on the notion that engaging in dialogue with the U.S. might prove to be a futile endeavor.

After bombing Iran's nuclear facilities, U.S. Vice President JD Vance claimed that "our view has been very clear that we don't want a regime change."

However, Trump has directly contradicted his deputy, saying that "if the current Iranian regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn't there be a Regime Change."

With Washington offering neither trust nor reliable diplomacy, a more viable alternative must exist. Against this backdrop, more and more countries around the world are looking to China for certainty and stability.

A recent survey conducted by Arab Barometer to gauge public views on the U.S.-China competition in the Middle East and North Africa found that Beijing remains more popular than Washington among the nine countries surveyed in the region.

This feeling is also commonly found in Western countries. Another recent Pew Research Center study found that more than half of adults in 19 of 24 countries surveyed lack confidence in the U.S. leadership on the world stage. Majorities in most countries express little or no confidence in Trump's ability to handle specific issues, the Russia-Ukraine war, U.S.-China relations, as well as conflicts between Israel and its neighbors.

Clearly, the erosion of trust in the U.S. leadership is accelerating China's gaining popularity and credibility in Middle Eastern affairs at a critical juncture. For instance, Beijing played a key role in brokering the Saudi-Iran detente. China also contributed to BRICS enlargement as it brought regional powers, Egypt, the UAE and Iran, to the fold. The country also secured a $400 billion worth strategic pact with Iran back in 2021.

All of this happened while Washington threatened to bomb countries left and right. This essentially means that amid America's irresponsible role and abandonment of diplomacy in the Middle East, the region will increasingly look to China to play a constructive role in restoring peace and stability in the region.

China, for its part, has already called on the international community to step up efforts to promote de-escalation of the Israel-Iran conflict to prevent wider war or destabilization in the region.

What is clear is that the U.S. can no longer dictate outcomes in the Middle East or secure diplomatic wins at key global institutions. By sabotaging its own credibility through broken deals and reckless military attacks, Washington has only given China the role of stabilizer in the Middle East.

The U.S. strategy of bombing first and negotiating later is only accelerating the formation of a multipolar world.

The lesson for the U.S. should be clear from the Iran fiasco: Power is not just about missiles. It is about trust. And on that metric, the U.S. seems to have gone bankrupt.

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