Diplomacy often seen as weakness in middle east

What I want to say here is that the Middle East has a different
understanding of diplomacy than the West. Acceptance of demands or opening up to dialogue can very well be mistaken for weakness. On one hand, it will frighten America’s allies and those sitting on the fence. On the other hand, it will embolden Iran and will most likely lead to further more ambitious demands.

Dialogue and giving diplomacy a chance is not a bad idea, but
understanding the mentality of the people sitting across the table is
an important prerequisite.

Omar Fadhil is spot on. This has been a major failing in US foreign policy. Too many think we are still dealing with Russians. We are not. The mind set is much different. It is a European mentality that continues to dominate the State Department. It has failed in the past and will continue to fail. Strength is the only thing understood in the Middle East.

We lost so much time in Iraq with all the self doubt and hesitation. Once they believed we would stay and we sent more troops to reinforce that idea minds on the ground began to change.