Former New York Times contributors Stephen Hanson and Jeffrey Kopstein warn that President Trump's recent remarks about redrawing Iran’s borders signal a dangerous shift in U.S. foreign policy. After launching a war with Iran, the president admitted the map could look different after hostilities end, hinting at possible territorial revisions that could spark ethnic and religious unrest across the Middle East and Iraq too also.

Beyond Iran, the administration has threatened to deploy troops to Colombia and Mexico, claimed authority over the Panama Canal, and intensified pressure on Denmark to cede Greenland. These moves blur the distinction between diplomatic negotiation and unilateral seizure, unsettling allies and raising the specter of costly legal battles for multinational firms with assets in contested zones for major energy firms.

The essay argues that eroding fixed borders revives a pre‑World War II logic where power, not law, dictates territory. If the United States pursues claims on Canada, Panama or Venezuela, other great powers may follow, inflating geopolitical risk and prompting insurers and investors to reassess exposure to sovereign‑default and conflict‑related losses, including supply‑chain disruptions and currency volatility for multinational corporations worldwide.