![]() ![]() The Iranian-Saudi rapprochement may lessen Gulf Arab states’ security concerns. The bottom-line conclusion is that while reducing the intensity of regional competition may help redirect political energy to the core internal conflicts, the prospect of swift solutions remains slim. In this survey, Crisis Group analysts based in the Middle East present local perspectives on the Saudi-Iranian agreement and its impact on the region’s wars and crises. From its side, Tehran accuses Israel of sabotaging its nuclear program, and Saudi Arabia of backing ethnic opposition groups in Kordestan, Baluchistan and other troubled provinces, along with hostile Iranian diaspora media. Israel, meanwhile, sees Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat. Several Gulf Arab states have long been concerned about direct threats from, or even attacks by, Iranian proxies, as well as alleged Iranian support for dissident movements. The competing regional agendas of Riyadh and Tehran have compounded devastating wars in Yemen and Syria, and continue to fuel instability in Lebanon and Iraq. The degree to which the Joint Trilateral Statement issued by the three countries augurs a geopolitical shift that will see China assume a larger role in a region where the United States has long been dominant remains uncertain.Īn equally important question is whether and to what extent the Beijing agreement will contribute to managing, or even resolving, conflicts elsewhere in the Middle East. The countries’ effort to mend fences was public knowledge – Iraq and Oman had hosted previous rounds of talks between Iranian and Saudi officials – but China’s role in midwifing the accord was unforeseen, as was the speed with which the rapprochement has proceeded. Riyadh formally severed ties with Tehran seven years ago. Tensions between the regional rivals date back more than four decades, persisting at lower levels through an earlier period of détente in the 1990s and then heightening in the past two decades. On 10 March, representatives of Iran and Saudi Arabia, who had been meeting secretly for five days in the Chinese capital Beijing, announced a Chinese-sponsored agreement to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |