Lately the Biden administration tried to redefine the relationships with Saudi Arabia, having deteriorated in 2018 over the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. It may be recalled that Biden, after assuming the charge as the president of the country, had vowed to make Saudi Arabia a "pariah" state over Khashoggi's murder.
Biden is under tremendous pressure after having initiated proxy war in Ukraine. Not only the world but United States is bearing the brunt of higher energy prices, supply disruptions and historic high inflation.
Analysts believe Biden having failed in punishing Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) changed his policy to mend relationships, but failed in securing more oil from Saudi Arabia and made little headway on Israeli-Palestinian relationship.
Biden in his recent visit tried to reassure his allies in the Middle East that the U.S. will stay actively engaged amid fears that China and Russia could swiftly fill a leadership vacuum.
Countering China's growing influence in international politics, Russia's war in Ukraine and Iranian influence in the Middle East remain to be seen as the top priority of the Biden administration.
According to some analysts, the New Cold War has already been triggered and the world will see further intensification due to China’s growing economy, military modernization, superiority in Artificial Intelligence, and soft power domain.
China's bilateral trade with Arab world in 2021 crossed the figure of US$330 billion. The China-led Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has 20 partners in the Middle East and North Africa while Beijing has inked 15 strategic partnerships with the Arab states in the last decade alone, causing enough trouble for Washington.
The region has rapidly been witnessing bloc politics. The US and China are on quest of promoting their ideologies and political clouts. Washington seeks to promote democratic values to reinforce the QUAD and New Quad in the Middle East.
China–Iran 25-year economic cooperation deal of US$400 billion enhances Beijing's influence in the Middle East and the Indian Ocean.
Biden, unlike his predecessor Trump, is trying to unite the US allies in the Middle East, cementing NATO, the New Asia-Pacific Economic Bloc, and reviving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to obtain relative political gains.
When Trump became the president of the country, he instead of visiting Canada (Ottawa is the first capital to be visited by the US presidents due to economic diplomacy) visited Saudi Arabia and inked an agreement, worth US$350 billion including a US$110 billion weapons deal. Many US analysts believe that Saudi Arabia is a lucrative market as far as the US military-industrial complex and foreign direct investments are concerned. Saudi Arabia can also be instrumental in eroding Iranian sway in the region.
The Middle East (West Asia) is unlikely to remain immune to the great powers’ competition. Legitimation of MBS remains to be seen as the tip of the iceberg. The only game in the town for Washington is China and Iran in the region.
People can still recall that Modi was the only person ever denied a US visa because of deliberately allowed anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat state in 2002 when he was the Chief Minister of the state resulted in the killing of more than 1,000. However, Modi turned out to be an apple's eye of the US as soon as he became prime minister of India. It appears the US is more concerned about its national interest and is least bothered with morality. According to Machiavelli school of thought “politics have no relation to morals”.
China, Russia, and Iran are clearly in one bloc opposing the US hegemony. The Ukraine crisis has further been bolstering ties between Beijing, Moscow, and Iran. Biden’s statement clearly illustrates that aforementioned countries are predicated to be described as the new evil axis to the US in a bid to unite the allies to protect the democratic values and the prevailing international world order.
