The Biden administration often appears more afraid of Iran than Iran is of the Biden administration. That is a very dangerous dynamic for the United States. It undermines American deterrence, which is a function of not only the considerable capability of the US military but also its will to use it to defend US interests. While the military action that President Joe Biden has ordered this week to counter the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its axis of resistance is degrading Iran’s capacity, it is not deterring its will.

President Biden often appears uncomfortable speaking about Iran. Throughout his presidency, he has never delivered substantive, formal remarks outlining his Iran policy. This is unusual for a regime that poses a significant threat to American interests and values. On January 30, when the president was asked about his response to Iran’s axis of resistance’s killing three American service members in a drone attack in Jordan, he gave short answers as Marine One was noisily waiting in the background for his departure from the White House. He has relied on short, written statements on all things Iran – including when announcing the deaths of the US troops on January 28 and when the United States began its retaliation.

The president has reportedly hesitated to even deliver a formal address to the nation on the subject – something his predecessors did as they authorised military action. He feels a major speech ‘could escalate tensions with Iran and spark a larger regional conflict,’ according to Politico. In recent days, his administration leaked intelligence assessments which portrayed Iran as not being in full control of its proxies. This leak appeared to be political in nature to justify solely targeting the tentacles of the Octopus, Iran’s proxies, rather than the head in Tehran.

An unnamed senior official even went as far as to publicly rule out a US strike on Iran—something the US national security advisor had to walk back in a later television interview because the remark was so damaging.