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“Imagine all the people living life in peace.” —John Lennon, Imagine |
The Greater Promise of the Abraham Accords
In the 1940s, few Americans could have imagined Germany and Japan becoming two of America’s closest allies. Both had fought devastating wars against the United States and its allies. Yet American leaders recognized that permanent punishment would only plant the seeds of another war. Reconstruction, economic development, security partnerships, and gradual reconciliation offered a better future.
That vision worked. Germany became central to the transatlantic alliance, while Japan developed into a peaceful democracy and one of America’s most important economic and strategic partners. This transformation did not require forgetting history. It required giving former enemies practical reasons to build a different future. Japan’s reconstruction ultimately produced a formal American alliance that has endured for generations. U.S. State Department historical record
Therein lies the brilliant promise of the Abraham Accords. They reject the assumption that the Middle East must remain imprisoned by its oldest grievances. Instead of demanding that every disagreement be resolved before cooperation can begin, the Accords allow cooperation itself to become part of the solution.
Diplomatic recognition leads to direct flights. Direct flights encourage tourism and personal relationships. Trade creates jobs and shared investments. Cooperation in water, agriculture, energy, technology, medicine, and defense gives governments and ordinary citizens something valuable to protect. Peace stops being merely a document signed by political leaders and becomes woven into everyday life.
The potential extends far beyond Israel’s present partners. A widening circle of normalized relations could connect Israeli technology and innovation with Arab capital, markets, geography, and energy resources. It could strengthen moderate governments, weaken extremist movements, and give younger generations an alternative to inherited hatred.
None of this requires nations to surrender their identities. Germany did not stop being Germany, nor Japan Japan, when they became American allies. Arab countries need not become less Arab or Muslim to cooperate with Israel, and Israel need not compromise its Jewish identity or security.
This is why the future of Iran is so important. The world properly focuses on the Iranian regime’s use of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and other armed groups to spread instability. But Iran also participates in a wider strategic alignment with China and Russia. In a true sense, Iran their proxy. The three governments cooperate where doing so helps them challenge American influence and the Western-led international order.
The replacement of Iran’s Islamic revolutionary government with one seeking normal relations would therefore represent far more than a regional change. It could weaken the network of proxy warfare surrounding Israel and demonstrate that national prosperity offers more than permanent confrontation. Regime collapse alone, however, would not guarantee this outcome. The real hope must be for a stable government accepted by the Iranian people and prepared to live peacefully with its neighbors.
The rise of the Persian people changes the equation for China and Russia, along with the USA and Israel. Witness this shift in America's Hemisphere. Thanks to the same mastermind. You know who!
No Place at the Table for the IRGC
There can be no place within a peaceful regional order for an apocalyptic theocracy committed to destroying Israel, driving America from the region, and undermining Western civilization. A government cannot demand the privileges of cooperation while financing terrorist proxies, exporting revolution, threatening its neighbors, and seeking another nation’s destruction.
This is not an indictment of the Persian people. Many Iranians want the same peace, freedom, normalcy, and prosperity that the entire region desperately needs. They deserve the opportunity to reclaim their country, determine its future, and restore Iran’s honorable place among the nations.
The door should remain open to an Iran that abandons terrorism, nuclear intimidation, and annihilationist ambitions. But the first requirement for joining a community of peace must be accepting the right of everyone else at the table to exist.
CAN COMMUNISTS SEE THE LIGHT?
That points toward the larger message Trump has expressed since entering politics: nations can defend their sovereignty and interests without remaining trapped in endless wars. His administration calls this “America First” and “peace through strength”—a policy that seeks cooperation from a position of national confidence rather than weakness. White House
The Abraham Accords’ greatest promise, therefore, is not merely peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. It is the possibility of demonstrating to the world that cooperation can produce greater security and prosperity than domination. Germany and Japan prove that yesterday’s enemies do not have to remain tomorrow’s enemies. The hope is that the Middle East will prove it again—and that China and Russia will recognize the possibilities for themselves.
Then Again, There Is Man
It is a magnificent vision. Unfortunately, it depends on human beings.
God told Noah that “the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Genesis 8:21).
In other words, humanity had just received a fresh start—and God was already managing expectations.
So, yes, let us pursue peace, expand the Abraham Accords, open embassies, increase trade, and keep everyone talking. Just do not assume that another treaty will cure pride, envy, greed, or our remarkable ability to turn a seating arrangement into an international incident.
There is another promise: the Messiah.
Until then, keep negotiating—and double-check the seating chart.
