Iran and the Agony of the Unipolar World

Alexander Dugin argues that Trump has stripped away diplomatic illusions and revealed the raw, brutal essence of American hegemony.

Conversation with Alexander Dugin on the Sputnik TV program Escalation.

Host: Let us begin our discussion with Iran. Breaking news has just come in from the Islamic Republic’s Foreign Ministry: its official spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, stated that Tehran has already formulated its response to the proposals from international mediators regarding a ceasefire.

At the same time, we are observing a parallel process: Donald Trump’s ultimatum, whose deadline expires today, April 6. In his usual style, the American president is threatening Iran with having to live “in hell” if it does not agree to a deal and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

What is actually happening right now on the diplomatic front between Washington and Tehran? After all, only recently the Iranian side insisted that no negotiations were taking place, and today we’re seeing clear signs of movement and discussion of a possible framework agreement, reportedly prepared with mediation from Pakistan and China. How do you assess this situation?

Alexander Dugin: There is so much disinformation surrounding this war that it is extremely difficult to rely on anyone’s statements. We see negotiators being killed in the very course of the process, and any agreements are violated immediately. There is a sense that with Israel and the United States it is equally difficult both to conduct negotiations and to refrain from them—perhaps the former is even more dangerous. I think the Iranians have already learned this.

The fact that Trump went so far as to post an obscene message on Western Easter clearly shows whom they are dealing with. On the day when Catholics were celebrating the Resurrection of Christ, the U.S. president wrote that the coming Tuesday would be a day of destruction for all of Iran’s bridges and energy systems. I quote: “You’ve never seen what’s going to happen on Tuesday.” This is followed by a profane demand to open the strait and a direct threat: “You crazy bastards will live in hell.” And the final, utterly blasphemous note: “Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.”

This is a literal quotation from his post on Truth Social. Even many American analysts saw in this signs of a rapidly developing clinical condition: no U.S. president in history has ever allowed himself to speak this way either to enemies or to allies. It shows complete disregard both for his own religion and for the feelings of others.

We are confronted with unprecedented diplomatic conditions. There are no longer any obligations, red lines, rules, or norms. What we are dealing with is harsh, crude, and utterly infernal aggression, where no word carries any weight.

Some might say that something extraordinary is taking place, whereas I would argue that there is nothing fundamentally new here. If we look at how the United States behaved under previous presidents, they expressed themselves diplomatically, politely, observed etiquette and norms. Of course, the current behavior is unprecedented: some kind of “animal” now occupies the White House. But it is important to emphasize that Americans have always behaved this way. The presentation was different; the essence remained the same.

The West, led by the United States, has always sought to strengthen its hegemony, and when that hegemony began to slip away, it preserved it by any means: demonizing opponents, relying on brute force, and justifying this afterward with false arguments. Trump has introduced nothing essentially new into American policy. He has simply discarded the “humanitarian veil,” the diplomatic camouflage. His methods, ultimatums, and negotiating style are no different from those of his predecessors, whether on the right or the left.

Trump is engaged in a kind of political pornography: he tears away all coverings and says, “Look, this is how things really are—coarse and brutal.” Some like this, others do not, but we have shifted into a blunt, street-level language of international relations. At the same time, the substance of Western policy has remained unchanged.

We had hoped that Trump would change this course, that he would focus on America’s internal problems. But he did not. Internal problems are mounting rapidly; nothing has improved—everything has only become worse. In foreign policy, there are no changes either, except for one: the manner in which actions are presented and, if you will, a peculiar, frightening honesty.

Trump is the embodiment of the aggressor’s “honesty.” He speaks directly: “I will kill you like dogs. Whether you are guilty or not does not matter—I will destroy everything. I will crush you, trample you underfoot. I will control your oil and appoint your leaders. You are nothing, you are my slaves, and if you resist, then you are rebellious slaves.” He behaves this way with everyone—but in fact, this is how all American presidents of recent decades have behaved. I repeat: the form has changed radically, but the essence has not changed one bit.

And this is the most dangerous thing: Trump has not become something fundamentally new in American history. He continues the same aggressive, hegemonic, rigidly unipolar policy as his predecessors—he simply packages it differently. Hence tomorrow’s ultimatum to Iran. Does Trump truly intend to destroy the country’s entire energy system? We know that the Americans have a certain superiority in the air; the extent of their control is significant. We can expect ground operations on islands and massive bombardments.

I believe that very little now depends on negotiations. The Iranians will not acknowledge defeat and will not capitulate before the brute force of a bloody aggressor—they simply cannot do so by their very nature. Most likely, they will advance their own “vigorous Shiite project.” Shiites have often lost in material terms throughout history, yet they have survived under horrific conditions for centuries as a persecuted minority.

For them, they are shaped by the ethic of Karbala: a readiness to accept earthly defeat for the sake of a great spiritual victory, like the early Christian martyrs. This is a particular culture of sacrifice and endurance. And when Trump attacks this society with such open cruelty, he receives in response not fear, but the utmost consolidation and courage. The heroic Iranian people today stand united against pure, unalloyed evil coming from the West.

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Iran and the Agony of the Unipolar World