John Gay is the executive director at the John Quincy Adams Society and former managing editor of The National Interest. He is co-author, with Geoffrey Kemp, of War with Iran: Political, Military, and Economic Consequences.
The Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” strategy against Iran was supposed to lead to a better nuclear deal and moderate Iran’s foreign policy. It has achieved the opposite, with diplomacy halted and tensions spiking across an array of areas. Instead of continuing with maximum pressure, the Biden administration should set a new strategy, one based on deterrence and diplomacy. Restoring the nuclear deal offers a natural place to begin, but it should build from there to reflect that U.S. interests are limited and easily achieved.
