FnF News
FNF News | U.S. Foreign Policy & Diplomacy
Published: June 20, 2025
By: Khadija Khan, Senior Correspondent
Peacemaker-in-Chief or Power Broker? Trump’s Dual Message to Israel, Iran, and the World
Washington, D.C. — In a high-stakes moment of global tension, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt referred to President Donald J. Trump as “the Peacemaker-In-Chief” during a briefing on Thursday, while addressing the administration’s handling of the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.
“President Trump remains committed to peace through strength,” Leavitt told reporters. “He is open to diplomacy, but he’s also not afraid to use strength when it comes to protecting American allies and interests.”
Her remarks come amid growing international concern over a series of airstrikes, cyberattacks, and proxy escalations in the Middle East that have brought Israel and Iran to the brink of direct confrontation.
Trump, who returned to the White House after a contentious 2024 election, has positioned himself as a stabilizing force in the region — even as critics accuse him of pursuing policies that risk sparking a wider war.
Behind the Title: “Peacemaker-In-Chief”
The moniker is no accident. Trump’s allies have revived it from his first term, when he brokered the Abraham Accords — a series of normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab nations, including the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.
“He achieved what decades of career diplomats couldn’t,” said former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman. “He shifted the paradigm.”
Now, as tensions between Tehran and Tel Aviv spiral — particularly over Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons activity and Israel’s reported targeting of Iranian Revolutionary Guard assets — the White House is once again casting Trump as a dealmaker who can contain chaos without capitulation.
A Return to “Peace Through Strength”
Leavitt’s statement echoes a classic Republican foreign policy doctrine popularized during the Reagan era. According to senior administration officials, Trump is pursuing a dual strategy: offering limited diplomatic backchannels to Tehran via intermediaries in Oman and Qatar, while simultaneously expanding U.S. military readiness in the Persian Gulf.
- Two U.S. carrier strike groups remain deployed in the region.
- U.S. intelligence has been shared with Israeli forces, though the administration has stopped short of endorsing a full-scale Israeli military campaign.
- Trump has reportedly spoken directly with Prime Minister Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin to de-escalate flashpoints.
“He’s threading a needle,” said Dr. Michael Doran, a former senior director at the National Security Council. “This is not the Trump of 2017 dropping MOABs in Afghanistan. This is a more calculated, more globally conscious commander-in-chief.”
Critics Call It Dangerous Diplomacy
Despite the administration’s confident messaging, Democrats and foreign policy analysts are deeply skeptical.
“Trump is not a peacemaker — he’s a power broker,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA). “He’s playing brinkmanship with nuclear adversaries and calling it diplomacy.”
Human rights organizations have also warned that Trump’s warm relations with autocratic leaders in the region — including Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President el-Sisi — could embolden further regional crackdowns under the guise of anti-terrorism operations.
Moreover, critics note that while Trump speaks of diplomacy, the U.S. has withdrawn from multiple multilateral agreements, including the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) during his first term. Efforts to revive the agreement since 2021 have faltered, and Trump has made no commitment to renegotiation.
Global Implications: A New Cold War or Just the Same Old One?
Russia, China, and the EU are all watching closely. The European Union issued a statement warning against further escalation, while Beijing has urged all parties to “exercise maximum restraint.”
“This conflict has the potential to upend the global energy market and drag multiple superpowers into proxy competition,” said Julianne Smith, former U.S. ambassador to NATO.
Yet Trump, known for rejecting conventional diplomacy, seems focused on direct engagement between strongmen leaders. Some argue that this personalist approach — one he previously used with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un — could either prevent catastrophe or speed up miscalculation.
What Americans Think
Polls show that a majority of Republicans support Trump’s approach to the Middle East, while independents remain split. Among Democrats, however, disapproval of his handling of Iran is high — particularly amid fears that another Mideast war could begin during an already fragile global moment.
A recent Quinnipiac poll (June 2025) showed:
- 62% of Republicans approve of Trump’s “peace through strength” strategy.
- 41% of Independents say Trump is “keeping the region stable.”
- 76% of Democrats believe his policies are “escalatory and dangerous.”
Conclusion: A Legacy Still in the Making
As Iran and Israel trade covert blows and international diplomacy teeters on the edge, the world is watching to see whether Trump’s Peacemaker-In-Chief persona will hold — or crack.
For now, the Trump administration walks a precarious line: military readiness without invasion, diplomacy without compromise, and peace without weakness.
The cost of failure, however, could be historic.