America has again reached Saudi Arabia with a big leader, this time it is Antony Blinken. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Saudi Arabia from 6 to 8 June. While in April CIA Director William J. This is the third trip by senior US leaders to Saudi Arabia this year, following Burns and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in May. Why do they go to Saudi Arabia again and again? Reuters believes that the US hopes to stabilize relations with its friendly country, Saudi Arabia. On the same day that Blinken visited Saudi Arabia, two events took place in the Middle East: One was the reopening of the Iranian embassy in Saudi Arabia. This is another symbolic progress in bilateral ties after Saudi Arabia and Iran announced the resumption of diplomatic ties under the mediation of China. The second was that Saudi Arabia’s crown prince and prime minister, Mohammed bin Salman, met Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan president. Both sides hoped to strengthen cooperation in various fields.
More recently in the Middle East, Egypt and Turkey improved diplomatic ties under the guidance of the resumption of Saudi Arabia-Iran diplomatic ties. Syria is back in the Arab League and relations between Iran and Jordan have improved. This is how a more united and independent Middle East is being created. Trust does not break in a day. America should think why the situation in the Middle East has become like this? The United States has been the largest external power influencing the Middle East since the end of World War II. To maintain its hegemony, the US has long fomented turmoil and incited conflict in the Middle East. America is building the “number one destroyer” in the Middle East.
With a change in strategic focus in recent years and not relying on Middle East energy, the “oil for security” relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia and other friendly countries in the Middle East has become more loose. What’s more, America’s irresponsible interest rate hike has caused great damage to Egypt, Lebanon and other countries. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has left food-importing countries like Egypt in the lurch. The countries of the Middle East know very well that America is untrustworthy and that their future and destiny must be in their own hands. According to a 2022 survey conducted by the Arab Center for Policy and Research among 14 Arab countries, 78 per cent of respondents believe the US is the biggest threat and source of instability in the Middle East.
The US government has been sending its senior officials to Saudi Arabia, the main objective of which is to prevent geopolitical changes in the Middle East as soon as possible, and to stabilize the relations with Saudi Arabia and save the Middle East alliance system. A day before his trip to Saudi Arabia, Blinken announced the US would add a senior diplomatic post to help promote “regional integration in the Middle East”. In the eyes of analysts, this is actually to increase the US presence in the Middle East and facilitate the US to continue interfering in the affairs of the Middle East.
However, no diplomatic arrangement can change the general “trend” of Middle East reconciliation. As the Foka think tank reports, the situation has changed in the Middle East. After years of wars, the power of “unity” is overcoming the weight of “division”. Reuters quoted analysts as saying that one of the objectives of Blinken’s visit was to slow high domestic inflation. The US hopes to enlist the support of Saudi Arabia in reducing oil prices. However, before Blinken’s arrival, “OPEC+” announced an extension of the current production cut until 2024. At the same time, Saudi Arabia also voluntarily reduced crude oil production by one million barrels per day in July this year to 9 million barrels per day, which is the lowest level since June 2021. This is bad news for Blinken, and a sign that he will find it difficult to make any headway.
On the one hand, new changes are taking place in the Middle East to seek independent development, and on the other hand, the US is obsessed with the old thinking of inciting conflict between the camps. No wonder analysts said that even if Biden reaches Saudi Arabia, it will be of no use. The era of American dominance in the Middle East is over.
(Credits-China Media Group, Beijing)
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