Qatari spy (for the Muslim Brotherhood) is dead.
Good.
I wonder how much money pro-Iran Qatari nationals sent to liberal coffers?
https://www.dailysabah.com/opinion/columns/end-of-orb-alliance-a-change-in-turkey-gulf-ties
02/24/2021
A new status quo has since emerged, as Joe Biden replaced Donald Trump as U.S. president. The Biden administration and, more broadly, the Democrats have a different view of the Middle East than the country’s previous leader.
Biden actively seeks to relaunch nuclear talks with Iran, which currently negotiates the framework for dialogue with Washington. That bargain, without a doubt, hurts the Gulf’s interests.
Indeed, the U.S. has already halted its military assistance to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen.
Moreover, Biden waited a whole month before speaking with Netanyahu – which, experts say, suggests that the U.S. administration will give Israel the cold shoulder.
Finally, the White House issued an interesting statement, saying that Biden’s counterpart in Riyadh was King Salman, as opposed to MBS. Those remarks are widely believed to suggest that Washington intends to sideline the princes.
The Gulf states, accurately interpreting the changing status quo, are slowly revising their regional policy. In response to Biden’s victory, they immediately moved to de-escalate tensions with Qatar and lift the blockade.
There is every reason to believe that similar steps will follow.
Their next move will presumably involve normalization with Turkey. As a matter of fact, certain signs are already there.
In recent days, the Turkish and Emirati ministers of science mentioned each other on Twitter as a token of goodwill. It was the first contact between the two countries after a long time – and, possibly, a discreet gesture intended to lay the groundwork for normalization.
For the record, it would have been possible to claim, even in the absence of the aforementioned tweets, that the bilateral relationship was on the brink of improvement.
At the end of the day, states are rational actors and their actions are informed by their interests. The new status quo encourages Turkey and the Gulf states to normalize their relations.
What that means for the region – and what geopolitical developments it may entail – will be the subject of my next column.
20 posted on 2/25/2021, 10:55:28 PM by Fedora