The UN Security Council’s adoption of Trump’s 20-Point Gaza Plan is being sold as a diplomatic win. But behind the headlines lies the same fatal pattern that has undermined U.S. strategy in the Middle East for decades: Western leaders keep treating jihadist movements as if they can be appeased, incentivized, or negotiated into normal statehood.

The result is predictable.Jihadist groups expand, moderates collapse, American allies lose confidence, and U.S. deterrence erodes in the region, because the jihadist Muslims have patience. They can take temporary losses that leave them standing with time and resources to rearm, as they are implementing a 1,400+ year Muslim ideology.

President Trump wants stability in the Middle East and a secure foundation for its strategic economic corridor linking the U.S. to India through the region to counter China. To do that, he must stop pretending that the Arab-Israeli conflict is a technical problem that can be solved by better engineering. It is an ideological conflict driven by actors who see concessions as opportunities rather than compromises.