Feasibility Trap

Marhoum proposes the feasibility trap, as a new concept to explain the strategic considerations, or absence of these, in the current US-Israeli war with Iran—a war that seems to lack a final objective. The war objectives have transitioned from stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons to removing the Ayatollah, to supporting civil society. ‘This enthrallment produces a subtle transformation in decision-making logic. The central question is no longer, “Is this strategically wise?” It is, “Can this be done successfully?” Once the answer to the second question is yes, the first question may be asked less forcefully – or not at all. The feasibility trap explains the strategic fog surrounding American decision-making in the current conflict’ (Marhoum 2026).

This translates as a tendency to favour actions primarily because they are technically or operationally possible rather than standing on optimal long term strategic considerations, this he argues lead to suboptimal outcomes. Marhoum goes on to sustain that ‘[o]perational actors – military planners, intelligence services, and technical specialists – can demonstrate how objectives could be executed in practice, which gives their advice unusual authority. The result is a subtle shift in power: operational feasibility begins to outweigh diplomatic caution and political judgment. […] The feasibility trap explains the strategic fog surrounding American decision-making in the current conflict’ (Marhoum 2026).