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published photo, Getty Images
Biden during his visit to Riyadh as former US Vice President Barack Obama
As US President-elect Joe Biden and his team prepare to take over government affairs in the United States, there is increasing talk in the Arab region of the changes that could occur in US policy towards the region and its countries. problems, in the era of the democratically elected president, as the Middle East emerges as one of the most controversial areas of American influence, with their hot files, and their crises that may have become more complex, under the president American Donald Trump, until they turn into serious polarization and wars raging in more than one Arab country.
When discussing US policy in the Middle East, observers prioritize issues based on how warm they are, most importantly the Saudi issue, which includes several issues, overcome by the war in Yemen for nearly six years. , which led to the rise of opposition to his retention in the US Congress, due to the humanitarian catastrophe that led to it, and then to the case of the assassination of the Saudi opposition writer and journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, whom the Saudi regime has been accused of orchestrating, and sparked an international outcry over the human rights situation in the Kingdom.
It is not possible to talk about US policy towards Saudi Arabia and the Gulf without talking about Iran. Under the reign of former Democratic President Barack Obama, the region experienced a strong regional polarization, between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Obama’s bias in favor of Tehran after reaching an agreement with him, with international sponsorship, then Republican President Donald Trump abolished it, which excited the Saudis and several Gulf countries. Many in Saudi Arabia fear that things will go back to how they were under the reign of former Democratic President Barack Obama.
In addition to the expectations of the form of American foreign policy, in the next step vis-à-vis Saudi Arabia and Iran, several other files emerge, related to the expected position of the Biden administration, vis-à-vis Saudi Arabia and Iran. Trump’s strong alliance with several regimes in the region, including the Saudi, Emirati and Egyptian regimes, and what observers say is Trump’s encouragement. affairs of other countries, and ignore the issue of democracy in the countries of the region, as well as the Palestinian and Syrian issue.
Joe Biden’s campaign announced at the time of his candidacy that he would “end US support for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, if elected president.” “We will reassess our relationship with Saudi Arabia, end US support for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, and ensure that the United States does not give up its values to sell weapons or buy oil.” , a statement posted on Biden’s campaign page said.
Regarding the case of the assassination of Saudi writer and journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Biden issued a statement on Friday (October 2nd) in which he expressed his support for the Saudi dissidents and confirmed the establishment of mechanisms for them. protect against attacks against the Kingdom. . In his statement, he pointed out that journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s crime, “for which he has paid with his life,” he said, was to criticize his government’s policies, stressing that he had joined to the voices of many courageous Saudis, women, men, activists. and reporters mourning Khashoggi’s death and “reiterating his appeal to people around the world. »A place to freely exercise their rights.
In light of these statements, in addition to what Biden told the US Council on Foreign Relations last year that he would “order an assessment of relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” many observers expect Washington-Riyadh relations to go through a cold phase in Joe Biden’s time, at a time when others expect the United States to keep selling arms to Riyadh because it helps provide jobs for Americans.
It is not possible to speak of the expectations of American policy vis-à-vis the Arab region, without speaking of the expectations concerning the Iranian dossier. After years of containment policy, led by Washington under the reign of former US President George W. Bush, Jr., which aimed to impose crippling sanctions on the Iranian economy, US Democratic President Barack Obama has crossed a decisive step by signing a nuclear deal with Tehran in 2015, abolishing the Iranian regime and the sanctions imposed on it, in exchange for temporary restrictions on the facilities of the Iranian nuclear weapons program.
At the time, Obama was widely criticized by the governments of the Gulf countries, led by Saudi Arabia, and was always accused of favoring Iran during his reign, and therefore what Republican President Donald Trump did. later, by canceling this nuclear deal, contributed to the deepening of the alliance between Trump on the one hand, Saudi Arabia and the allied Gulf countries on the other.
Now, with the Democrats returning to power, with the victory of their candidate, Joe Biden, fears prevail in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states that Biden will reinstate the nuclear deal with Iran, which is pushing him again. to expand its regional influence. In August 2019, Biden told the US Council on Foreign Relations that “if Iran returns to meeting its nuclear obligations, I will return to the Common Comprehensive Plan of Action” and use it as a springboard to counter “other malicious actions. of Tehran in the Region. ”
Alliances and democracy
US President Donald Trump has forged a solid alliance with the regimes of several countries in the Arab region, namely Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain, as well as Israel, of course, an alliance that many democracy advocates accuse of wanting to destroy movements demanding change across the Arab region and that he had strong support from Trump himself, whose administration tolerated numerous human rights violations in those countries .
Arab and Gulf diplomatic circles fear that Joe Biden will adopt a policy similar to that pursued by former Democratic President Barack Obama, whose administration has made no secret of its support for the waves of the so-called “Arab Spring” and the rise to power of the Islamists. at the start of this decade. Many observers believe that Biden will adopt a different policy from his predecessor, Donald Trump, when it comes to supporting these allies, and they believe that the established principle of Biden and the Democrats is not to interfere in the activities of the US State Department, unlike what Donald Trump was doing.
Israel and the Palestinians
Although many Israeli officials admit Trump has done to Israel what no US president has done before him, most of those officials also point out that Biden is a friend and strong ally of Israel, and that things will not change much during his reign, is what the Palestinians also believe. Those who say they don’t expect much from Biden, but they see things in his day will not be what they were in Donald Trump’s day, when it comes to dealing with their problem, but Biden’s previous positions on the Palestinian issue indicate that he will remain committed to a two-state solution, based on two viable neighboring states.
How will Biden’s victory affect Washington’s policies towards the Arab region?
Will things lead to a confrontation between the Biden administration and the Saudi regime??? Or is it Biden? it will be used graduated style?
How do you assess what some are saying that Iran will come back as the region’s biggest winner after Biden is elected President of the United States?
What do you expect from Biden to manage the alliance that Trump has established with the regimes of Arab countries in the region?
Do you agree with those who say that Biden will adopt the same policies as Obama in support of movements for change in the Arab world?
What do you hope he takes care of the Palestinian question and Israel?
We will be discussing these and other topics with you on Wednesday, November 11 from Talk Point at 16:06 GMT.
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