The United States “will not walk away” from the Middle East

President Joe Biden, speaking at a summit of Arab leaders in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, said Saturday that the United States “will not walk away” from the Middle East as it tries to ensure stability in a volatile corner of the world and fuel the global flow of oil to reverse the increase in gasoline prices.

His comments, delivered at the Gulf Cooperation Council as he closed the final leg of a four-day trip, come as the region braces for a possible confrontation with Iran.

“We will not walk away and leave a vacuum for China or Russia or Iran to fill,” Biden said. “We will seek to seize this moment with active and principled American leadership.”

Although US forces continue to target terrorists in the region and remain deployed at bases throughout the Middle East, Biden suggested he was turning a page after the country’s invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Today, I am proud to be able to say that the eras of ground wars in the region, wars that involved large numbers of US forces, are not on,” he said.

Biden also pushed his counterparts, many of whom lead repressive governments, to guarantee human rights, including women’s rights, and allow their citizens to speak out.

“The future will be won by countries that unleash the full potential of their populations,” he said, including allowing people to “question and criticize leaders without fear of reprisal.”

Before the speech, Biden spent the morning meeting one-on-one with the leaders of Iraq, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, some of whom he had never sat down with.

Biden invited Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who became president of the United Arab Emirates two months ago, to visit the White House this year and said he looked forward to “another period of strong and growing cooperation” between their countries under the leadership of the United Arab Emirates. sheikh.

The Gulf Cooperation Council summit in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah is an opportunity for Biden to demonstrate his commitment to the region after spending most of his presidency focused on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s growing influence in Asia.

Hours before the conference began, the White House released satellite images indicating that Russian officials have visited Iran twice recently to view weapons-capable drones it seeks to acquire for its war in Ukraine.

None of the countries represented at the summit have moved in unison with the United States to sanction Russia, a key foreign policy priority for the Biden administration. If anything, the UAE has become a kind of financial haven for Russian billionaires and their billionaire yachts. Egypt remains open to Russian tourists.

The release of satellite images showing Russian officials visiting Kashan airfield on June 8 and July 15 to view the drones could help the administration better relate the relevance of the war to the concerns of many Arab nations about Iran’s nuclear ambitions, missile program and support for militants in the region.

A senior Biden administration official, briefing reporters ahead of the summit, said Moscow’s efforts to acquire drones from Tehran show that Russia is “effectively banking on Iran.”

[Con información de The Associated Press y Reuters]

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