Unable to stop the pace of reconciliation in the Middle East, American officials take turns to fight in the Middle East | the United States | take turns to fight in the Middle East
American senior officials have gone to Saudi Arabia again, this time Antony Blinken.
From June 6 to 8, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken paid a visit to Saudi Arabia. This is the third time a senior US official has visited Saudi Arabia this year, following CIA Director Burns in April and National Security Advisor Sullivan in May. Why run so frequently? Reuters believes that the US hopes to stabilize its relationship with its ally Saudi Arabia.
On the same day when Antony Blinken visited Saudi Arabia, two things happened in the Middle East: one was the reopening of the Iranian Embassy in Saudi Arabia. This is another landmark progress in bilateral relations between the two countries of Saudi Arabia and Iran after announcing the resumption of diplomatic relations under the mediation of China; Another event was that Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammad met with visiting Venezuelan President Maduro, and both sides looked forward to the prospects of cooperation and opportunities to strengthen cooperation in various fields.
Former allies have repeatedly failed to play according to the American script, demonstrating a more pronounced trend of the Middle East's departure from the United States. In the current Middle East, under the guidance of the resumption of diplomatic relations with the Shah, the main trend is to shake hands and make peace. Egypt has improved diplomatic relations with Türkiye, Syria has returned to the Arab League, Iran has warmed relations with Jordan and other countries... A more united and independent Middle East is emerging.
This kind of situation is popular among peace loving people, but there are also exceptions in the United States. For example, as for Antony Blinken's visit to Saudi Arabia, Daniel Benem, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Arab Peninsula Affairs of the State Department of the United States, said frankly that the United States will continue to stay in the Middle East and "will not leave a vacuum for other rivals to fill". Under the scrutiny, there was a strong sense of unease and unwillingness behind this.
Trust does not collapse in a day. While the United States frequently feels a sense of presence in the Middle East, it should also consider: why has the situation in the Middle East developed to this day? Since the end of World War II, the United States has been the largest external force influencing the situation in the Middle East. In order to maintain its hegemony, the United States has long caused turmoil and provoked confrontation in the Middle East, becoming the "number one destructive king" in the region.
In recent years, with the shift of strategic focus and the end of reliance on Middle Eastern energy, the "oil for security" relationship between the United States and ASEAN friends such as Saudi Arabia has become more loose. In addition, the irresponsible interest rate increase of the United States has hurt Egypt, Lebanon and other countries. The United States continues to inflame the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has plunged Egypt and other food importing countries into a food crisis. The Middle East countries are deeply aware that the United States is unreliable, and their future and destiny must be firmly in their own hands. A survey conducted by the Arab Policy and Research Center in 2022 on 14 Arab countries showed that 78% of respondents believe that the biggest threat and source of instability in the Middle East is the United States.
Seeing it become the least popular character in the Middle East, the United States is not willing to accept it. The US government frequently sends high-ranking officials to Saudi Arabia with the main purpose of preventing geopolitical changes in the Middle East as soon as possible and hoping to save the Middle East ally system by stabilizing relations with Saudi Arabia. The day before his visit to Saudi Arabia, Antony Blinken announced that the United States would add a senior diplomatic post to help promote "regional integration in the Middle East". In the view of analysts, this is actually to enhance the United States' presence in the Middle East and facilitate its continued involvement in Middle East affairs.
However, no amount of diplomatic arrangements can change the overall trend of Middle East reconciliation. The fundamental reason is that the United States' policy of "pulling one faction against another" in the Middle East is seriously mismatched with the current demand for unity and cooperation among Middle Eastern countries. As pointed out in the report by the Fokka Think Tank, the wind vane in the Middle East has clearly changed, and after years of war, the power of "cooperation" is outweighing the weight of "division".
The outside world also noted that Reuters quoted analysts as saying that one of the purposes of Antony Blinken's trip is that the United States hopes to get Saudi Arabia's support in reducing oil prices to slow the high domestic inflation. However, before the Antony Blinken people arrived, "OPEC+" announced to extend the existing production reduction until 2024. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia voluntarily lowered its daily crude oil production by 1 million barrels in July this year, to 9 million barrels per day, the lowest level since June 2021. This is tantamount to giving Antony Blinken a shot in the arm, and seems to indicate that it is difficult for him to make any breakthrough in this visit.
On one hand, there is a new change in the unity of the Middle East in seeking independent development, and on the other hand, the United States is addicted to the old mindset of provoking confrontation between factions. No wonder analysts say that even if Biden comes, it won't be of much use. The wave of reconciliation that is surging in the Middle East has confirmed the view of American scholar Gregory Gauss: the era of US dominance in the Middle East has come to an end.
