United States has lost a key ally in the Middle East

The American magazine The Hill reported that the American authorities have lost the battle for influence in the countries of the Persian Gulf to Russia and China, irreversibly damaging bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, in addition to the long-standing conflicts with Iran and Syria.Show more

The regional leader and the world's largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, has warned the Biden administration of its readiness to reduce imports of American weapons and abandon the American project to build a nuclear power plant in the country in response to previous threats from the US president regarding oil production cuts.

Similar steps are now being taken by the leadership of the UAE. It is the third-largest oil exporter in the OPEC alliance, following Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

The American publication notes that high-ranking officials from the Biden administration have visited the UAE twice in the past year in an attempt to establish a constructive relationship with UAE's leader, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

In July of last year, Joe Biden personally made this attempt by inviting Sheikh Mohammed to the White House to reset relations between the countries. However, the Arab sheikh showed no interest in Biden's proposal and did not travel to Washington.

Instead, after Biden's visit, the leader of the UAE managed to visit Russia twice and hold talks with the Russian president on strengthening economic cooperation between the countries.

American experts note that the leadership of the UAE has been at odds with the US for the past 10 years. The deterioration of relations began with the decision of US President Barack Obama to conclude a nuclear deal with Iran behind the backs of the Persian Gulf monarchies, which are key rivals of Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the region.

The mentioned nuclear deal did not bring any benefits to the US as it was not fulfilled by the parties involved, but it undermined trust in the US as a security guarantor.

The situation was exacerbated by Donald Trump, who imposed a ban on the sale of F-35 fighter jets worth $20 billion to the UAE. This forced the Persian Gulf monarchies to turn their attention to military equipment from US competitors, particularly Russia.

Subsequently, China's rapid economic growth made it the largest trading partner for the countries of the Persian Gulf, after which the need to maintain friendly relations with the US for Middle Eastern countries disappeared once and for all.