Trump's Grand Strategy: Iran, China & The New World Order | Kamran Bokhari

Key Takeaways

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  Shift to Regional Burden-Sharing - The Trump administration is moving away from direct military intervention toward a model where regional allies are expected to take the lead in maintaining power balances.

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  Strategic Containment of Iran - The core logic of current Middle Eastern policy is to neutralize Iranian influence to create a stable regional equilibrium that favors U.S. interests without long-term occupation.

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  Prioritizing Great Power Competition - By resolving or de-escalating legacy conflicts in the Middle East, the U.S. seeks to redirect its strategic focus and resources toward the long-term challenge of China.

Episode Description

A deep dive into Trump’s emerging grand strategy and the geopolitical logic behind the Iran conflict.  Kamran Bokhari joins Bankless to unpack how the U.S. is trying to reshape the Middle East, manage tensions with China and Russia, and transition from direct intervention toward a new model of burden-sharing, regional power balancing, and global restraint. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24 https://bankless.cc/spotify-premium ------ 🔮POLYMARKET | #1 PREDICTION MARKET https://bankless.cc/polymarket-podcast  🪐GALAXY | INSTITUTIONAL DIGITAL FINANCE https://bankless.cc/galaxy-podcast  🏅BITGET TRADFI | TRADE GOLD WITH USDT https://bankless.cc/bitget 🎯THE DEFI REPORT | ONCHAIN INSIGHTS https://thedefireport.io/bankless 🐇MEGAETH | 1ST REAL-TIME BLOCKCHAIN https://bankless.cc/megaeth ------ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 0:56 Iran War Unstated Motives 10:03 Trump’s Goals 18:43 China’s Role 26:43 Venezuela & Cuba 28:22 US China Relationship 34:27 Optimizing Global Relationships 39:56 Iran War Best Approach 47:12 Does Iran Want to Negotiate? 51:30 Iran Regime Change 56:51 Israel Interests 1:00:36 Marco Rubio 1:05:24 Signal in the Noise 1:07:25 Closing & Disclaimers ------ RESOURCES Kamran Bokhari on X https://x.com/KamranBokhari  LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kamranbokhari/  New Lines Institute https://newlinesinstitute.org/people/kamran-bokhari/  Forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/kamranbokhari/  ------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures⁠