4 ways the war in Iran has weakened the United States in the great power game

China and Russia view the latest Washington intervention in the Middle East as a further decline of the United States’ global power.

By: Jeffrey Taliaferro, Tufts University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: April 11, 2026

Words: 1,313

Last Updated: 3 months, 2 weeks ago

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By Jeffrey Taliaferro, Tufts University

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

Napoleon Bonaparte’s maxim may well have been in the minds of policymakers in Moscow and Beijing these past weeks, as the U.S. war in Iran dragged on. And now that a 14-day ceasefire between Tehran and Washington is in effect – with both sides claiming “victory” – Russian and Chinese leaders still have an opportunity to profit from what …

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