The New Forever Wars: How America Gets Stuck in Its Allies’ Fights

Foreign Affairs | Dafna H. Rand

Security assistance provided by the United States more than tripled from $15 billion to $46 billion between 2010 and 2025, but Washington routinely fails to leverage early influence over combatants in partner conflicts. By failing to establish strict operational conditions, U.S. support for campaigns in Ukraine, Gaza, and Yemen has resulted in prolonged military entanglements and diminished control over strategic outcomes.

A structural erosion of American leverage occurs as domestic political pressure yields unconditional early aid, enabling local partner leaders to resist subsequent demands for restraint or peace negotiations. Public approval for foreign military aid inevitably wanes over protracted hostilities, highlighted by congressional opposition to Saudi-led bombing in Yemen and delayed funding supplementals. Without securing explicit shared strategic objectives and enforcing strict operational standards during the narrow initial window of crisis, Washington risks deepening diplomatic friction while entrenching unresolved, perpetual wars worldwide.

Comment

Asymmetric security arrangements frequently grant recipient states operational autonomy, leaving patron governments unable to direct theatre strategy. The 2019 War Powers Resolution regarding American aerial refueling for Saudi operations in Yemen illustrated how domestic legislative checks can abruptly curtail patron backing. Similarly, utilising presidential drawdown authority to transfer military hardware without tied political conditions allows frontline partners like Ukraine to dictate terms of engagement. These dynamics transform material aid into strategic lock-in, where donor states remain tied to partner endstates beyond their own parameters.

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