Trump's New Men in the Middle East!

During his joint press conference with President Donald Trump at the White House two days ago, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun remarked, “I have long looked forward to this visit. It is a great honor to meet a great president like you.” Trump turned to the reporters and responded, “Did you hear that? He knows how to win my favor and how to talk to me. Now he can have anything he wants.”

These were not simply words of courtesy. They reflected a defining feature of Trump's foreign policy. Excessive—often almost theatrical—flattery has become a prerequisite for engagement with the American president, both before negotiations begin and perhaps even after they conclude. Many world leaders have adopted this approach, but most have stopped at diplomatic compliments. Some Arab leaders, however, have taken it much further.

During the same press conference, Trump lavished praise on two other regional leaders: Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi. In Trump's eyes, they represent the future of the Middle East.

Al-Sharaa, in particular, has become the model that Trump appears eager to replicate across the region. Speaking about him, Trump declared, “He has done a tremendous job and succeeded in unifying his country.” He then added, “I wouldn't be surprised if this gentleman (Aoun) accomplishes exactly the same thing.”

From Washington's perspective, Al-Sharaa has transformed Syria into an integral pillar of America's regional strategy. He has aligned his government with the international coalition against terrorism, signaled his willingness to move toward normalization with Israel, and expressed openness to security and military agreements with both Washington and Tel Aviv.

More significantly, he has embraced Trump's doctrine of exchanging security for economic opportunity—a business-first approach that strips politics of traditional notions of legitimacy and rights, reducing it instead to the art of pragmatic deal-making. In Trump's view, Al-Sharaa has become the ideal functional leader: ideology has been pushed aside and replaced by political pragmatism. Syria's apparent willingness to treat the occupied Golan Heights as a secondary issue stands as perhaps the clearest illustration of this transformation.

The Iraqi prime minister represents another version of the same model. Trump praised him by saying, “There is tremendous chemistry between us and a great deal of agreement.” During his recent visit to Washington, Al-Zaidi delighted Trump by promoting a new formula: American troops out, American companies in.

The equation is straightforward: replace military influence with economic dominance. Al-Zaidi also committed himself to establishing a final timetable for disarming armed factions and eliminating Iranian influence inside Iraq. Previous Iraqi governments had frequently been criticized by Washington for hesitating to implement American demands and for maintaining close ties with Tehran. Al-Zaidi has pledged to remove that hesitation. From Washington's perspective, its principal demands are now being answered.

President Joseph Aoun appears to be the newest member of this emerging club of leaders whom Trump believes can work directly and effectively with his administration to reshape the Middle East and preserve regional stability.

Trump's expectations of Aoun are equally clear: disarm Hezbollah by whatever means necessary, reach a peace agreement with Israel, and eliminate Iranian influence in Lebanon. The intricate realities of Lebanese domestic politics—or the possibility that such objectives could ignite new tensions among the country's diverse political and sectarian communities if opposing forces are not accommodated—appear to be of little concern to Washington.

The fundamental problem, however, is that Trump has never been known for long-term commitments. His policies are driven by interests rather than principles. His worldview is dominated by the logic of the deal. Should circumstances change or a particular bargain lose its strategic value, he is unlikely to hesitate before discarding it like a used tissue.

The real question, therefore, is what becomes of these leaders when that day arrives.

Their political investment in Trump and their willingness to accommodate his demands could deepen domestic polarization, erode their credibility, and perhaps trigger new political and security crises within their own societies.

The Middle East offers no shortage of cautionary examples. Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon can scarcely afford additional instability.

Trump's emerging club of "new leaders" is not the answer.

Originally published in Al-Masry Al-Youm.