Let Down by Trump, Arabs Tiptoe Toward Diplomacy With Iran

EghtesadOnline: Persian Gulf Arab states are signaling their willingness to resolve their differences with Iran through diplomacy because they feel let down by US President Donald Trump.

News ID: ۷۴۸۰۹۳

06 August 2019

The Iranian Diplomacy website also quoted an informed source as saying that the shift in the stance adopted by Arab governments toward Iran can be attributed to the shattering of their illusions about Trump's power to confront Iran militarily.

"Persian Gulf Arab countries were under the impression that Donald Trump and his administration are like George W. Bush [who ordered the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq]. They had this dream that America would engage in a confrontation with Iran, which would eventually lead to a war between the two countries and only a spark is needed to start a war," the unidentified source said.

Ali Mousavi Khalkhali, the website’s editor-in-chief, said Iran's downing of an American drone produced a spark but no war broke out between the two countries, much to the surprise of Arab countries, Financial Tribune reported.

In June, Iranian forces shot down a US RQ-4 Global Hawk drone that had violated the country's airspace in the south. Tehran said the unmanned surveillance aircraft was on a spy mission over its territory, but Washington claimed that it was targeted in international airspace in "an unprovoked attack".

Trump reportedly approved military strikes against Iran in retaliation for the incident but called off the attacks at the last minute, saying too many people would have died.

"This reaction astonished Arab states and caused them to rethink their hostile policies toward Iran," Khalkhali said, referring to diplomatic moves by Arab governments, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, to mend strained ties with the Islamic Republic.

RFE/RL recently cited UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash as saying that his country and Riyadh prefer a political approach to their problems with Iran.

Striking Realization

The political observer added that another major development came when Washington indicated that it will not necessarily come to Britain's aid in its standoff with Tehran over a British-flagged tanker seized by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking on Fox News in late July, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, "The responsibility ... falls to the United Kingdom to take care of their ships."

Khalkhali believes that Washington's position on the maritime incident gave Arabs the impression that the US administration does not intend to take any responsibility for ensuring the security of its allies.

He noted that the Iraqi government played an "effective" role in reducing tensions between the Arab countries and Iran.

If this atmosphere of rapprochement continues, the "B-Team" may no longer feature Arab figures, the analyst said, in reference to US National Security Advisor John Bolton and Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu, that Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says are trying to drag Trump into war with Iran.