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Andrew Latham, Professor of Political Science, Macalester College

Is Trump heading to a Pyrrhic victory in Iran?

President Donald Trump speaks to the press before departing the White House on April 16, 2026. Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images

President Donald Trump has claimed victory in the war in Iran even before the conflict is over. But despite killing the country’s leader and seriously degrading its military, there is an argument being made that the Islamic Republic has emerged all the stronger for having simply survived.

Indeed, a phrase that has repeatedly cropped up as the U.S. has sunk more and more military hardware and credibility into Operation Epic Fury is “Pyrrhic victory.”

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