Senator Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for secretary of state rabid Persian and Chinese hawkSo did Rep. Mike Waltz, his pick for national security adviser. Representative Elise Stefanik I got approval As ambassador to the United Nations, he makes it clear that he is pro-Israel; Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, who was selected as ambassador to Israel, has repeatedly stated that he believes Israel has the biblical authority to annex Gaza and the West Bank. Steven Witkoff, a close friend of Trump and staunch supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has been named special envoy for the Middle East. Rounding out the crew is CIA director John Ratcliffe, another loyalist who was previously Trump’s director of national intelligence. Tulsi Gabbard, who was picked for Ratcliffe’s old job, is a bit of an oddball on the team, but she’s still pro-Russia and pro-Israel (and pro-Assad and pro-Modi, too).

In total, it is a pro-war, pro-interventionist Cabinet. This group can certainly be expected to tell Israel to “get it over with”; This would likely mean the annexation of both Gaza and the West Bank. Trump and his foreign policy team are likely to pressure Russia and its murderous dictator Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, albeit on extremely friendly terms. This solution will increase the likelihood of global conflict; for Russia will be on the doorstep of NATO, either through Ukraine (or what remains of Ukraine), if the country continues to move towards membership, or through aggression against Poland, a future full NATO member. .

No matter how Trump’s team navigates the conflict in the Middle East, further conflict with Iran, one of whose nuclear facilities was destroyed by Israeli missiles, seems inevitable. Meanwhile, this group of advisors seems intent on using American power against Iran. The Biden administration’s approach to Israel has been incompetent, confusing and, in many respects, disastrous. But he made avoiding a wider war a priority. This will no longer be the case. At the same time, a more aggressive stance against China increases the likelihood of conflict in Asia. American foreign policy under Trump will be much more aggressive and the possibility of war will increase.