Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
At the 2026 Middle East Forum Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., Morgan Ortagus, Special Representative for Lebanon, delivered a keynote address on American deterrence, Iran’s weakened position, Hezbollah’s decline, and the Trump administration’s Middle East policy.
Ortagus argues that decades of hesitation allowed Iran and its proxies to gain strength, threaten Israel, endanger Americans, and bring the region to the edge of nuclear breakout. She contrasts what she describes as a “policy of fear” with a “policy of courage,” crediting President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and America’s regional allies with restoring deterrence, degrading Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran’s military capabilities, and opening new possibilities for diplomacy.
In this address, Ortagus also discusses the aftermath of October 7, the return of hostages, the campaign against Iran’s nuclear program and proxy network, the economic pressure on Tehran, the first public diplomatic meetings between Israeli and Lebanese officials in decades, and the possibility of future peace between Lebanon and Israel.
The address was delivered at MEF’s Fourth Annual Policy Conference, “America the Unpredictable: Making Sense of the Middle East in a New Era.”
Subscribe for more conversations with leading analysts on the Middle East and beyond.
At the 2026 Middle East Forum Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., Morgan Ortagus, Special Representative for Lebanon, delivered a keynote address on American deterrence, Iran’s weakened position, Hezbollah’s decline, and the Trump administration’s Middle East policy.
Ortagus argues that decades of hesitation allowed Iran and its proxies to gain strength, threaten Israel, endanger Americans, and bring the region to the edge of nuclear breakout. She contrasts what she describes as a “policy of fear” with a “policy of courage,” crediting President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and America’s regional allies with restoring deterrence, degrading Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran’s military capabilities, and opening new possibilities for diplomacy.
In this address, Ortagus also discusses the aftermath of October 7, the return of hostages, the campaign against Iran’s nuclear program and proxy network, the economic pressure on Tehran, the first public diplomatic meetings between Israeli and Lebanese officials in decades, and the possibility of future peace between Lebanon and Israel.
The address was delivered at MEF’s Fourth Annual Policy Conference, “America the Unpredictable: Making Sense of the Middle East in a New Era.”
Subscribe for more conversations with leading analysts on the Middle East and beyond.
