Editor’s note: Guest columnist Nikolas Gvosdev is filling in for Steven Metz, who will return next week.

“You can’t surge trust.” That was the constant refrain of Gen. James Amos, commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps from 2010 to 2014, whenever he offered advice for U.S. policymakers about the Middle East. Unfortunately, the people who took his advice closest to heart have been the Russians. ...