The US president is not just choosing between continuing the pressure or stopping the war – he is looking for a usable victory

美国总统不仅在选择继续施压还是停止战争——他在寻找一个可用的胜利。
 
The military and political dynamic around Iran has entered a more dangerous phase, yet the diplomatic choreography now unfolding suggests that Washington is no longer thinking only in terms of punishment and pressure.
 
围绕伊朗的军事和政治动态已经进入一个更危险的阶段,然而,目前展开的外交舞蹈表明,华盛顿不再仅仅考虑惩罚和施压的问题。
 
Since March 20, the pattern has become unmistakable. The US and Israel have continued to widen the scope of their campaign against Iranian strategic infrastructure, including nuclear facilities, while Iran has answered by pushing retaliation toward symbols of Israeli nuclear deterrence and by threatening a broader regional energy shock. What appeared only days ago to be an escalation ladder without a visible ceiling is now also becoming a negotiation space, however deniable, fragmented, and politically fragile.
 
自3月20日以来,这一模式变得明显。美国和以色列继续扩大对伊朗战略基础设施的打击范围,包括核设施,而伊朗则通过针对以色列核威慑象征进行报复,并威胁引发更广泛的地区能源冲击来回应。几天前看似没有明显上限的升级梯度,现在也开始成为一个谈判空间,尽管这个空间是可否认的、支离破碎的,并且在政治上脆弱。