The Iranian Association of International Studies International Relations Researches 2251-8444 Articles in Press 2026 02 20 Understanding Trump’s Middle East Policy within the Framework of Offshore Balancing) Understanding Trump’s Middle East Policy within the Framework of Offshore Balancing) 242658 10.22034/irr.2026.550805.2776 FA Ehsan Abtahi Don Have Davoud Kiani Dr. Davood Kiani, Full Professor, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch Mehdi Zakerian Dr. Mehdi Zakerian, Associate Professor, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch Journal Article 2025 10 06 Following the heavy costs and ultimate failure of the interventionist foreign policy pursued by the George W. Bush administration (2000–2008) in the Middle East, the doctrine of offshore balancing gained prominence in American academic and policy circles. Barack Obama laid the groundwork for its implementation by revisiting liberal internationalism, but its formal execution occurred under Donald Trump. Accordingly, this study addresses the central question: What role did the doctrine of offshore balancing play in shaping and implementing the Trump administration’s Middle East policy? The findings indicate that Trump’s Middle East policy—through measures such as prioritizing cost reduction; avoiding entry into major, protracted wars; employing a strategy of delivering heavy blows with a light footprint in counterterrorism; distancing from liberal internationalism’s practice of aligning with democratic actors and suppressing rogue regimes; supporting proxy actors to build regional coalitions centered on Iranophobia; and focusing on nuclear nonproliferation in the Middle East—exhibited a high degree of convergence with the offshore balancing strategy. Pursuing a strategy of retrenchment without isolationism, Trump focused on preserving U.S. hegemony in the Middle East by leveraging the active involvement of regional allies. In this context, the Trump administration sought, through the Abraham Accords, to bring Arab states and Israel closer together and to shift the regional balance of power in Washington’s favor by delivering limited yet lethal strikes against anti-American actors and terrorist forces. Following the heavy costs and ultimate failure of the interventionist foreign policy pursued by the George W. Bush administration (2000–2008) in the Middle East, the doctrine of offshore balancing gained prominence in American academic and policy circles. Barack Obama laid the groundwork for its implementation by revisiting liberal internationalism, but its formal execution occurred under Donald Trump. Accordingly, this study addresses the central question: What role did the doctrine of offshore balancing play in shaping and implementing the Trump administration’s Middle East policy? The findings indicate that Trump’s Middle East policy—through measures such as prioritizing cost reduction; avoiding entry into major, protracted wars; employing a strategy of delivering heavy blows with a light footprint in counterterrorism; distancing from liberal internationalism’s practice of aligning with democratic actors and suppressing rogue regimes; supporting proxy actors to build regional coalitions centered on Iranophobia; and focusing on nuclear nonproliferation in the Middle East—exhibited a high degree of convergence with the offshore balancing strategy. Pursuing a strategy of retrenchment without isolationism, Trump focused on preserving U.S. hegemony in the Middle East by leveraging the active involvement of regional allies. In this context, the Trump administration sought, through the Abraham Accords, to bring Arab states and Israel closer together and to shift the regional balance of power in Washington’s favor by delivering limited yet lethal strikes against anti-American actors and terrorist forces.