Trump came back to the White House promising to end wars, not start new ones.
Yet today, the U.S finds itself staring at three conflicts that are all becoming more dangerous at the same time: Iran, Ukraine, and Israel-Lebanon.
His argument isn't simply that each war is getting worse, it's that they're beginning to bleed into one another; every crisis feeds the next.
According to Prof. Sakwa, part of the reason is that Trump no longer seems able to hold a consistent position long enough to impose stability.
One week he's praising negotiations, the next he's threatening to destroy Iran's bridges, power stations and desalination plants.
For decades, America was viewed as the Middle East's security guarantor.
Prof. Sakwa argues many countries in the region no longer see it that way.
Instead, they increasingly see Washington as another source of instability, which is why Gulf states are looking more seriously at building a regional security order that doesn't depend entirely on the U.S.
Trump still presents himself as the president who can end wars through force and dealmaking.
Prof. Sakwa thinks the opposite is happening.
He thinks every conflict Trump tries to manage is becoming harder to control, more interconnected and more dangerous than the one before.
And if he's right, the biggest risk is that they all get pulled into something much larger.
