Trump and War as a personal whim: “It will end when I want it to”
“It will end when I want it to.” With this phrase, uttered with the nonchalance of someone managing a routine business deal, Donald Trump summarized his vision of the war against Iran. It is a war that is not his, yet one he feels he owns entirely, along with everything it entails in terms of human lives, destroyed infrastructure, and shattered destinies.
In a brief phone call to the American outlet Axios, the President of the United States declared that the conflict will end soon because the bombings have reportedly left “practically nothing left to hit” in the country. Now that is a democratic achievement to celebrate in the USA. “When I want it to end, the war in Iran will end,” he added, as if commenting on a game of chess rather than a military campaign that is razing a sovereign state to the ground, in total defiance of international law, a charter that is increasingly less authoritative and respected by the “powerful and democratic leaders of the West.”
What is striking is not just the content of his words, but the tone. There was no mention of civilian casualties. No reflection on international law. No consideration for the millions of Iranians suffering the consequences of decisions made thousands of miles away in the Oval Office by a single man.
The internal contradiction of Trumpian thought emerged within just a few hours: first, the President claimed that any decision regarding the end of the conflict would be made in concert with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; then, with a pivot typical of his style, he claimed exclusive and personal power. The war ends when he decides. Allies, evidently, only matter to a certain point, and certainly not Israel in this instance.
Meanwhile, the numbers of the conflict speak for themselves. General Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, announced in a video message that U.S. strikes have destroyed over 5,500 targets and more than 60 ships, including Iran’s entire fleet of Soleimani-class corvettes. Iran’s naval and industrial capabilities, Cooper stated, have been drastically reduced.
Yet, in this balance sheet of iron and fire, not a single word appears regarding the civilian population. Not a number, not a face, not a regret. Only targets hit, objectives achieved, a cold and aseptic military accounting that transforms human beings into entries in a ledger.
This is the most disturbing portrait that emerges from Trump’s words: not that of a leader who has made a difficult decision and bears its weight, but that of a man who considers war a personal tool, revocable at will, without any institutional, moral, or humanitarian counterweight appearing capable of restraining him.
Photo Truth/Donald Trump
