There is no ‘Middle East.’ There’s a Levant America loves and a Gulf China needs

State of the Union speech on Jan. 23, 1980, declared, “An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital national interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force.”

As of 2024, the Persian Gulf accounted continue reading …