Ever since the unprovoked aggression against Iran by the US and Israel on February 28, 2026, the Islamic Republic has been retaliating with waves of missile strikes at US bases located across countries in the Middle East. Iran has categorically asserted its right to self-defense, and said it is responding to the illegal American attack by targeting its bases in the region.
For the Gulf states, this is the nightmare they spent years trying to avoid: being caught in the crossfire of a war they did not choose, fought between powers they cannot control. This moment of crisis illuminates a fundamental truth: the current security model, which relies on the presence of US forces as a tripwire against Iran, has failed to provide security. It has, instead, made the Gulf a shooting gallery.
In his first public message to the nation on March 12, 2026, the third Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei, said that while Iran remains committed to pursuing friendly ties with neighbouring nations, it will resolutely defend itself from attacks originating from US bases in those countries and would target them in retaliation.
On March 7, 2026, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted on X, “The defense policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran are consistent, based on the guidelines of our martyred Imam. As long as the presence of U.S. bases in the region continue, the countries will not enjoy peace. Iranian officials and people are united on this principle.”
Similarly, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in a statement, has warned, “The security and stability in West Asia is either for everyone or for no one.”
The False Promise of the American Umbrella
The argument for the US staying in the region rests on the assumption that American power deters Iranian aggression and protects the free flow of oil. The events of the past weeks have proven this logic to be a dangerous illusion. When Iran launched “Operation True Promise 4”, it did not just target Israel; it targeted and destroyed numerous bases of the US in countries such as Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAE, among others.
In effect, the US military bases, rather than acting as shields, functioned as lightning rods. By hosting American forces, the Gulf states became legitimate targets in Tehran’s eyes, transforming their sovereign territory into a battleground for an American-Israeli conflict with Iran. Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi, the Spokesman for General Staff of Armed Forces, stated explicitly, “The presence of the US in the Middle East creates insecurity for all nations in the region”.
Furthermore, when the missiles started flying, the much-vaunted US air defense umbrella proved to be a leaky roof. The current model has revealed a fatal flaw: the protector’s priorities do not align with the protected. The security of the Gulf has proven to be divisible, sacrificed for the security of Israel.
The Architecture of a Regional Solution
The long-term solution remains a regional one. The vision of a “New Middle East” imposed by US military might or Israeli dominance is a mirage. It will only breed more resentment and more resistance. True, indivisible security can only be achieved when the states of the region decide it is in their collective interest.
The ultimate goal must be the transformation of the Gulf from a forward operating base for extra-regional powers into a zone of peace. A regional security structure cannot be built on land occupied by one side’s patron. The US presence is the biggest source of strategic mistrust in Tehran and the biggest target for its retaliation. Its expelling would remove the primary casus belli.
The Necessity of Trust
The American security model has proven it cannot protect the Gulf from the consequences of American wars.
A Middle East where security is decided by its own states is a Middle East where crises are managed by those who have to live with the consequences. The Gulf states must awaken and recognize the fact that their security is truly indivisible from the security of Iran.
It would be profoundly better for everyone in the Middle East if the states of the region took control of their own destiny, expelling foreign bases and building an indigenous security architecture based on direct engagement and trust with the Islamic Republic; the path to lasting stability lies through Tehran, not Washington. Indeed, it is the only path that leads to a future where the skies above the Gulf are lit by commerce and development, not by the fire of war.
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