US President Obama has for years stuck to a strategy aimed at keeping the United States from getting pulled into a big regional war between Iran and America’s traditional Arab allies, according to the Washington Post.
The net result was a tailored, country-by-country approach to the region’s turmoil that put a priority on nuclear negotiations with Iran and the fight against terrorism. Containing Iranian proxies took a back seat.
As chaos and sectarian bloodshed have spread, the White House is facing heavy pressure from its traditional Sunni Arab allies, Congress and some in the U.S. military to confront Iran more forcefully over its support for militant groups.
“We’ve always had concerns about Iran’s destabilizing behavior and abetting some of the worst actors in the region,” said a senior administration official who was authorized to speak on the issue, but not be quoted by name. “We also have a realization of the precise limitations of how much we can impact that behavior".
In recent days Saudi planes have launched attacks against the Houthis in Yemen. The United States has supported the Saudi attacks with intelligence and logistical help.
In Iraq, the United States has pressured Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to disentangle Iranian-supported militias from government forces in exchange for the firepower of U.S. warplanes over the city of Tikrit.