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Within hours, as always, Donald Trump’s work and his words had crumbled – the Iran-Israel ceasefire disintegrated almost as soon as it was announced, exposed as yet another hollow stunt from a president obsessed with headlines over substance
It was as fragile as his ego.
Before the parties involved had a chance to speak, Donald Trump was doing a lap of honour around the world, hailing a ceasefire between Israel and Iran as a historic victory for his leadership. He posted slogans, shared self-congratulatory graphics – including one declaring “TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING” – and praised himself as the man who had brought peace to a region at war.
Within hours, as always, his work and his words had crumbled. The ceasefire disintegrated almost as soon as it was announced, exposed as yet another hollow stunt from a man obsessed with headlines over substance. What the US president trumpeted as a major diplomatic breakthrough has instead unravelled as yet another hollow promise, one forged not through serious negotiation or international consensus but through political theatre, self-promotion, and an alarming disregard for the complexity of the conflict he claimed to resolve.
The ceasefire, announced to great fanfare, lasted only a few hours before violence resumed. Missiles were once again fired, tensions reignited, and hopes for calm were extinguished before they had the chance to take hold. Earlier, true to form, Trump had taken to his personal platform, Truth Social, not to urge restraint or focus on regional stability, but to praise himself.
It was a moment of staggering hubris, and the statement was disproved almost immediately as the ceasefire disintegrated. This is the danger of a foreign policy built on self-image. Trump’s actions have long been governed not by strategic logic or informed advice but by the pursuit of credit and headlines.
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In this latest episode, he sought to frame himself as a peacemaker (as he has Ukraine), a man capable of ending one of the world’s most volatile standoffs. Once again, the reality has proven very different. Can Trump secure a ceasefire? Take our poll below, and if you can’t see it, click here
Even Trump’s sycophant supporters in the UK were quick to declare the ceasefire a world-changing achievement. One moronic troll even claimed: “The Don might have just saved millions of lives around the world.” Such declarations have aged as poorly as many of Trump’s ventures, from his failed university to his branded vodka. All quickly became busted flushes.
This ceasefire was never built to last. There was no structure, no verifiable enforcement, no multilateral agreement underpinning it. The regional actors most affected by the fighting were not visibly aligned in purpose or commitment. The absence of diplomatic groundwork made the deal little more than a fragile illusion.
Meanwhile, Trump’s previous actions have made any genuine progress towards peace more difficult. He withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal while destabilising a framework that had placed significant checks on Tehran’s nuclear programme. He has routinely backed Israeli military actions without serious scrutiny.
And most recently, he ordered the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities – an act which many experts agree pushed the region to the brink. His sudden pivot to peacemaker sits uncomfortably with the facts. And while his administration attempted to portray the ceasefire as evidence of strength and strategic foresight, the outcome speaks for itself: a few short hours of calm, followed by a renewed cycle of retaliation.
There is a pattern here, and it is deeply troubling. Time and again, Trump has positioned himself as a dealmaker. But what follows is not peace, not resolution, but collapse. From North Korea to Afghanistan to the Middle East, his record is one of rushed announcements, minimal follow-through, and maximum personal glorification.
The consequences are borne not by him, but by the people whose lives depend on stable diplomacy and coherent policy. It is not simply that this latest ceasefire failed. It is how it failed. In its haste. In its lack of credibility. And in its detachment from the on-the-ground realities that define one of the most entrenched geopolitical struggles in the world.
There was no roadmap, no coalition of allies, and no clear terms of agreement. Instead, a message of “mission accomplished” was presented before the mission had even begun. This is the style of governance that has come to define Trump’s presidency: optics over outcomes, slogans over solutions.
There is now serious damage to repair. The collapse of this ceasefire risks deepening mistrust among regional partners and complicating any future effort to secure a meaningful, durable peace. It undermines the credibility not just of the Trump administration, but of the United States as a reliable international actor.
Leadership in moments of conflict requires more than proclamations and graphics on social media. It demands discipline, clarity, and the patience to build trust over time.
Donald Trump has never demonstrated these qualities. The Middle East deserves more than theatrics. It deserves serious, sustained diplomacy. These 24 hours have once again shown that Donald Trump is not capable of delivering it. And the world, yet again, must deal with the fallout.