Another place where American Middle East policy could use a shake-up is in Qatar, a country that advertises its ability to serve as a mediator between the West and various terrorist groups, but was only able to arrange for the release of Israeli hostages piecemeal and at a high cost to Israel. Jonathan Schanzer and Natalie Ecanow observe that such results are typical when the natural-gas-rich emirate is in the middle of things. Take the case of American hostages held in Afghanistan:

Upon their release, the two Americans in Taliban custody—Ryan Corbett and William McKenty—departed Kabul for Doha, where U.S. officials were waiting to hand over notorious Afghan narco-terrorist Khan Mohammed. . . . At the time of his conviction, the U.S. Department of Justice described Mohammed as a “violent jihadist” bent on killing American soldiers. Locals reportedly showered Mohammed with garlands when he arrived back in his home province in eastern Afghanistan.

Qatari mediation also yielded the disastrous American withdrawal from Afghanistan. And then there is the war in Gaza:

Doha is eager to end the war in a manner that will ensure Hamas’s survival. This is hardly surprising considering that Qatar has showered Hamas with hundreds of millions of dollars and sheltered the group’s senior leaders for over a decade. What is surprising: that the Trump administration, like the Biden administration before it, appears content to treat Qatar as an honest broker in this deal, even as it is plainly apparent that Qatar is not a disinterested party.

For more than a year, the Iran-backed Houthis have been launching drones and missiles at ships traversing the Red Sea, as well as at Israeli territory, in support of Hamas. This development has drastically curtailed shipping through the Suez Canal and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, driving up trade prices. This week, the Trump administration began an extensive bombing campaign against the Houthis in an effort to reopen that crucial waterway. Burcu Ozcelik highlights another benefit of this action:

The administration has a broader geopolitical agenda—one that includes countering China’s economic leverage, particularly Beijing’s reliance on Iranian oil. By targeting the Houthis, the United States is not only safeguarding vital shipping lanes but also exerting pressure on the Iran-China energy nexus, a key component of Beijing’s strategic posture in the region.

China was the primary destination for up to 90 percent of Iran’s oil exports in 2024, underscoring the deepening economic ties between Beijing and Tehran despite U.S. sanctions. By helping fill Iranian coffers, China aids Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in financing proxies like the Houthis. Since October of last year, notable U.S. Treasury announcements have revealed covert links between China and the Houthis.

Striking the Houthis could trigger broader repercussions—not least by disrupting the flow of Iranian oil to China. While difficult to confirm, it is conceivable and has been reported, that the Houthis may have received financial or other forms of compensation from China (such as Chinese-made military components) in exchange for allowing freedom of passage for China-affiliated vessels in the Red Sea.