In 1982, Thomas Friedman was reporting as a journalist on the war that had begun in Beirut in the hope that it would end quickly. This earned him his first Pulitzer Prize. His second came in 1988 for his coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His third in 2002 for his reporting after 9/11.
44 years later, the New York Times columnist, who has spent half his life explaining the conflicts in the Middle East to Americans, is watching another war that was portrayed and tried to be easy, only to turn into a geopolitical "black hole." Friedman gave an interview to the Greek newspaper "Kathimerini" on the sidelines of the Democracy Forum to be held in Athens from September 29 to October 1.
- If you were in the White House Situation Room today, would you advise Trump to continue the war with Iran or to urgently seek a way out?
I'm not giving that kind of advice, but it's very clear what he's doing. He's looking for a way to end the war while also securing the original goal, which is to get Iran on a path that doesn't turn it into a nuclear power.
I think they started this war in a stupid way, but now we're in it. And if Trump is going to save anything for himself, for history, and for the world, the only goal I think the rest of the world would like to see is that Iran is not on a trajectory to become a nuclear weapons state. I have no idea if he can achieve that through negotiations.
– A few days ago, Mossad director Roman Goffman fired two senior agency officials, including the head of the Iran department. Do you think Trump fell victim to an overly optimistic plan?
If you want someone killed in Tehran or Beirut, call the Mossad. If you want to understand social and political trends in Tehran or Beirut, don't call the Mossad, because for the same reason they're good at the former, they're bad at the latter.
They are very good at recruiting spies who are willing to turn against their country, and they usually exaggerate how weak the leadership is and how easy the transition will be.
– Have you managed to determine what the real objective of the United States is now?
Nëse e dini përgjigjen, ju lutem më njoftoni. Unë besoj se qëllimi kryesor i Trump është të ulë çmimin e naftës dhe çmimin e ushqimeve dhe gjithçkaje tjetër para zgjedhjeve të mesit të mandatit. Dhe pastaj ai mendon në të kundërt, çfarë mund të bëjë për ta arritur këtë pa u konsideruar lufta një dështim? Dhe, sigurisht, edhe iranianët e dinë këtë.
– Pse Departamenti i Shtetit nuk ka arritur të paraqesë një politikë koherente që i bën të qarta prioritetet dhe strategjinë për përfundimin e luftës?
Sepse nuk kemi më një Departament Shteti, as një Këshill të Sigurisë Kombëtare. Kemi dikë të quajtur Sekretar i Shtetit dhe Këshilltar i Sigurisë Kombëtare. Madje ka edhe dikë të quajtur Sekretar i Shtypit i Shtëpisë së Bardhë. Por në realitet, nuk ka proces. Nuk ka asgjë tjetër përveç impulseve, paragjykimeve dhe obsesioneve të Trump, si dhe postimeve të tij në mediat sociale.
– Çfarë ju shqetëson më shumë në lidhje me atë që Trump dhe zyrtarët amerikanë mund të mos e kuptojnë për Iranin?
Unë isha në favor të marrëveshjes bërthamore të Obamës, dhe duke parë problemin bërthamor të Iranit, e konsideroj atë një “problem të lig”. Obama tha: “Cili është interesi thelbësor amerikan?” Interesi thelbësor amerikan është të mos i lejohet Iranit të zhvillojë një bombë bërthamore ose të ndërtojë objektet për një bombë bërthamore. Dhe kështu ai tha: “Do të bëj një marrëveshje me Iranin që e heq atë nga tavolina.” Dhe unë e mbështeta këtë ide.
Trump, siç e ka zakon, nuk e lexoi kurrë marrëveshjen – jam i sigurt – dhe as nuk e studioi ndonjëherë vërtet atë. E tëra çfarë dinte për marrëveshjen me Iranin ishte emri “Obama” në të. Dhe ai donte, siç ka bërë për shumë çështje të tjera, ta fshinte atë nga harta. Dhe kështu ata e shkatërruan impulsivisht, por nuk vendosën një regjim alternativ të vërtetë, që do të thotë se nuk kishin një Plan B, e lëre më një Plan C.
Irani kishte një Plan A, një Plan B dhe një Plan C. "Nëse na prisni kokën e lidershipit, ne do të krijojmë një alternativë”. Dhe pastaj, Plani B ishte: "Do ta mbyllim Ngushticën e Hormuzit." Dhe Plani C: “Ne do të bombardojmë objektet e naftës të të gjithë aleatëve tuaj arabë.”
Dhe si rezultat, në përpjekjen e tij për të parandaluar Iranin nga blerja e një “arme shkatërrimi masiv”, ai i lejoi Iranit të zhvillonte një “armë përçarjeje masive”, e cila prish si prodhimin ashtu edhe transportin e naftës në Ngushticën e Hormuzit.
Nëse do të shkruaja një libër për këtë moment, titulli do të vinte nga cicërima e Trump në prill: “Hapni Ngushticën e mallkuar, ju kopilë të çmendur!” Ky ishte presidenti ynë që zbuloi se në çfarë lloj bote jeton.
– A ekziston rreziku që Trump të zhvillojë një luftë që u shërben qëllimeve të Netanyahut më shumë sesa atyre të Shteteve të Bashkuara?
I don't know what interests are served, but there's no doubt that Netanyahu convinced him to start this conflict in a way that he thought would be very easy. "Like in Venezuela: you bomb from the air, the leadership falls, the people take power, or you make sure a friendly group takes control. And we will control Iran from a distance, just like we control Venezuela from a distance." That was the plan Netanyahu sold him.
We know from our reporting in the New York Times that the CIA director called the idea ridiculous. And even Secretary of State Rubio said it was too optimistic, but Trump didn't listen to them. So all the blame falls on Trump and Netanyahu, and this will go down in history as "The Bibi and Donald Madness."
– Are you worried that he is prolonging the war simply because he doesn't want to look like he has retreated or like he has been defeated?
He's in a tough spot because the longer he persists in the war, the more gasoline prices remain more than 25% higher, or a dollar more than before the war began. And that has consequences for the entire economy.
So the longer he drags out the war, so as not to look like a loser, the more he risks ending up as a loser in the midterm elections. And if he makes a bad deal, he risks being recorded as a "loser" in the eyes of history.
– I would like to close with a headline from your article: “I have never been more afraid for the future of my country” (April 2025). With the midterm elections just 80 days away, what worries you most?
I am really worried about two elections today. One is on October 27 in Israel and the other on November 3 in the United States. Donald Trump and Bibi Netanyahu are brothers from different mothers. Both are engaged in a parallel enterprise, which aims to destroy the rule of law in their country or to undermine, weaken the rule of law in order to perpetuate their power.
They are two very dangerous men, each engaged in a parallel enterprise, and we have two elections 7 days away. I believe the future of Israel and America is at stake in this election.
In the last Israeli election, I wrote that it would be "the end of Israel as we knew it." I believe that if Netanyahu wins, he will confirm that it will be "the end of Israel as a Jewish democracy."
And if Trump wins the midterm elections, his party and he will retain control of the Senate, the House of Representatives and, essentially, the Supreme Court for two years, and that will be "the end of America as we know it". So, there is a lot at stake in these elections. ©Taken from “Kathimerini”, adapted into Albanian by LAPSI.al
