Aaron David Miller's question: what is Xi taking from watching two great powers fail to bend a smaller one?
Miller, former State Department Middle East negotiator, says the asymmetry is the story of the era. Big powers keep discovering they can't force the outcome on small determined ones.
His answer to "is the US finished in the Middle East?": the phone still rings. The Gulf still depends on Washington. Israel more than ever. Lebanon and Syria are seeking deals under US auspices. Russia's bogged down in Ukraine, and China hasn't moved to collect on any of it.
"I was told after Vietnam we'd never lead again. After Iraq. After Afghanistan. Now after Iran"
He's not saying the war made America stronger. He's blunt that it didn't. His point is narrower and harder to dismiss:
Recklessly spent power and lost credibility haven't actually cost the US its clients. And nobody's stepped in to take them.
@aarondmiller2
