As evidenced by complicity in the Gaza genocide, the U.S.-Israel military symbiosis in the Middle East is increasingly shunned by the international community. The grand bargain was premised on the marginalization of Chinese trade and investment presence in the Middle East – and on the sidelining of the Palestinians. In a sense, this is the logical effect of America’s effective Middle East strategy, as opposed to its rhetorical diplomatic stance. Since 1945, Washington has relied on a dark record of regime change and destabilization in the Middle East. Yet, the simple truth is that the era of U.S. destabilization policies is over in the Middle East.