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The Problem With "Killing a Whole Civilization" - William Spaniel
President Trump has threatened to destroy Iranian civilization if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened. Today, we examine the value of such a strategy. The media focus has been on the legality of the action, but this is a waste of time. The Trump Administration does not care about those details. However, there some significant strategic problems here. We therefore look at the net risk of a domestic backlash and the loss of future coercive power as more persuasive arguments.
0:00 A Whole Civilization Will Die
1:41 The Irrelevance of International Law
6:07 Potential Backlash Effects
9:31 Sabotaging Your Own Bargaining Leverage
14:10 Takeaway Lines