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Strategic Vision, Special Issue (Summer, 2021)
Regional Complexities Biden administration faces a range of challenging issues in the Middle East Osama Kubbar
photo: Ron Przysucha
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, the West Bank.
hile it is too early to fully assess, it looks as though US President Joe Biden is crafting a new Middle East policy that is based on containment, assertiveness, and multilateral engagement. While Biden will work hard to dismantle the legacy in the region of his predecessor, former US President Donald Trump, one thing that will not change much is the US approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
tions. In turn, the KSA has made noticeable changes to its foreign policy, namely a reconciliation with Qatar, and declaring its intention to end the war in Yemen and pursue sincere rapprochement with Iran. Biden has offered an olive branch to Iran and intends to start a new chapter with that country, to attempt to push its leaders to rehabilitate Tehran’s foreign policy. In Libya, Washington is getting more involved with an apparent major push for a peaceful
Biden has already signaled to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) that the United States will not continue to support the war on Yemen, and has removed the Houthi movement from its list of terrorist organiza-
end to that country’s decade-long civil war. However, the new US administration does not yet have a firm strategy. Since Turkey is an active player in Libya, the strained Turkish-US and Turkish-EU relationships
Dr. Osama Kubbar is a senior advisor and strategist in the fields of international relations, national security, advanced technology and cyber security. He can be reached for comment at okabbar@yahoo.com