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Let me ask you a question that more than one of you may have wondered about at some point:
Would it be possible for the main countries of the Middle East to put aside their differences
once and for all and agree to organize a common defense with respect, for example, to Iran?
Something like a sort of Arab NATO or a military alliance that could even include Israel?
Does this sound like a crazy idea?
Well...
Pay close attention to this news story:
N1(Israel Confirms Regional Military Project, Showing Its Growing Role
The Israeli defense minister, Benny Gantz, said Israel was working with other countries
in the Middle East to combat Iranian military threats.
– New York Times)
N2(Israel Works With Arab Allies to Down Drones, in Sign of Growing Ties
The destruction of Iranian drones last year was an early example of a new regional military
project that President Biden is trying to shore up during his Middle East visit)
Surprising as it may seem, many in Washington are rubbing their hands together over this
possibility.
For example, with such an organization, the Pentagon could concentrate on its real priority:
Asia-Pacific, Iran would largely cease to be a headache, the oil fields would be much
better protected and the Middle East would probably end up becoming a much more stable
place.
And don’t forget for a minute that we are talking about a region that, however we look
at it, continues to play a key role in the global economy.
For starters, this region continues to produce more than 30% of all the oil consumed in the
world.
However, so far and with the exception of the new Israeli project promoted by the United
States, of which very few details are known, the truth is that trying to forge some kind
of military alliance in this region of the world has never been a simple matter.
In fact, in the past there have only been one or two attempts at something similar.
There is, for example, the case of the Central Treaty Organization, CENTO, an attempt in
the mid-20th century to create a NATO in the Islamic world between Turkey, Iraq and Iran,
along with other countries, which did not even take shape.
But take note, because not all attempts have been a fiasco.
The Gulf Cooperation Council, which is primarily an economic and commercial alliance between
almost all the countries of the Arabian Peninsula, also has a military arm, the Peninsula Shield
Force, a military force of some 40,000 troops designed to strengthen deterrence and improve
protection and coordination between member countries.
A force that has already been deployed on one occasion or another, for example in Kuwait
in 2003, just before the Iraq war, and in 2011, when at the request of the Bahraini
government this force was deployed to quell a civilian uprising.
Another example we could give is the case of the Arab League, which in 2015 created
a small joint force of 40,000 soldiers also with the aim of responding to possible crises
in member states.
However in this case we are talking about an underdeveloped arrangement with poorly
integrated forces.
But beyond these limited examples in terms of capability, integration, and operational
capabilities, the truth is that until now large-scale, joint defense in the Middle East
has been unthinkable.
But wait a minute, because what we are about to tell you in this video, could be either
the attempt to create a sort of seed of a new Arab NATO or just another failure in this
goal of making the security of the Middle East their own.
But, do you want to know what exactly we are talking about?
Well...
Let's get started.
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(INTRO)
Check out this 2018 news item:
N3(30 September 2018 – US begins talks with Arab officials over NATO-style regional alliance
– Enterprise)
VisualPolitik fans, Iran's increased belligerence and its nuclear program that threatened and
still threatens to turn it into an atomic power, coupled with its considerable ballistic
technology and relatively strong military, has put the major Arab nations of the Sunni
branch of Islam on alert.
You see, as many of you already know, there are two major religious branches in Islam,
the Sunnis, whose regional powers are Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and the
Shiites, whose most dominant power is Iran.
Well, the Sunni countries, most of them close to the West, have been thinking for some years
that perhaps it is time to seek protection and cooperate with each other in order to
face the Iranian threat.
But the most curious thing is not this, but above all it is the nation that is playing
a leading role in getting countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain,
Kuwait and Egypt to smooth things over in order to deal with the Iranian threat and
Islamist terrorism.
And, keep in mind, we are not talking about an insignificant challenge.
The countries of the Arabian Peninsula, excluding Yemen, spend about $120 billion a year on
defense.
A budget that almost equals that of the United Kingdom, France and Germany combined.
A budget that is also equivalent to almost half of China's entire military spending.
So it's hardly a trivial matter.
Well, the country that is trying to bring the major heavyweights of the Arab world together
to push for a military alliance, even putting itself in the middle, is none other than ... 3,2,1...
Exactly!
Israel.
But wait, wait, wait ..... Israel?
The same Israel that the Arab countries themselves have been targeting for years?
Is this some kind of joke?
Well...
As surprising as it may seem to you, the truth is that no, this is no joke.
It is incredible how the tables have turned in a matter of a few years.
1948, 56, 67, 73, 82...
During all these years, in one way or another, directly or indirectly, various Arab states
were at war or in a deadly confrontation with Israel.
Countries like Egypt and Jordan were at war with the Jewish state on several occasions
for various reasons.
And the vast majority of Arab countries that did not go to war with Israel, not only did
not view it favorably, but refused to recognize it as a State, financed the Palestinian struggle
and instigated trade blockades and economic punishments of all kinds against this country.
But, VisualPolitik fans, all that has now changed radically.
Not only is Israel no longer the enemy of the Arab world, but for a certain vein of
the Arab world, Israel is even becoming a valuable ally with which to consider military
agreements.
Because don't forget that Israel not only has one of the most effective and technologically
advanced militaries in the world, but it is also a nuclear superpower.
Listen up.
T1(A NEGEV 'NATO'?)
If there is one thing that seems endemic in the Islamic world, it is the inability to
reach major collective agreements.
And if it is in matters of defense or security, things get even more complicated.
To this day, each and every attempt to row in this direction has been met with the harsh
reality of the region.
A region where no one trusts anyone.
Hold on, though, because we could be on the verge of a turning point.
N4(The Negev Summit Furthers Arab-Israeli Normalization
The 'homegrown' talks signal growing regional ties despite lack of progress on two-state
solution – USIP)
N5(Israel expresses interest in NATO-like Mideast alliance – AL Monitor)
Now, what on earth is this Negev Summit?
Well, it was basically a summit that took place on 27-28 March 2022 in Negev, Israel,
between representatives of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt, Morocco and the
United States.
The aim was to bring Israel and the Arab countries closer together.
A new step in advancing the Abraham Accords.
Because it turns out that Israel is developing very good relations with the Arab countries,
with which it is reaching agreements of all kinds, and particularly with the United Arab
Emirates, a country with which relations are becoming very close.
This is allowing, as we saw at the beginning of this video, even close military ties to
develop.
Do you remember this news item?
N6(Israel Confirms Regional Military Project, Showing Its Growing Role
The Israeli defense minister, Benny Gantz, said Israel was working with other countries
in the Middle East to combat Iranian military threats.
New York Times)
Israel wants to play a fundamental role in leading a new regional bloc:
Today it is the best prepared country in the region to stop or at least deter Tehran, it
has one of the best armed forces in the world and its military industry is at the forefront
of technology.
Now, as I said before, all this talk of pushing for a grand military alliance in the region
is nothing new.
The Obama Administration was eager to escape from the Middle East once and for all.
There were those who began to assess this option and later the Trump Administration,
especially Mike Pompeo, promoted the so-called Middle East Strategic Alliance, or 'MESA',
an organization that sought to achieve greater military coordination between the countries
of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Egypt, Jordan and the United States itself.
However, while MESA has been put on standby with the change of Administration in the United
States, the Negev Summit, which from now on will become an annual event, does generate
a lot of hope, particularly because of the presence of Israel and because the United
States seems determined to assume a much more distant role with regard to the problems of
this region.
What’s more, an alliance that included Israel could work not only in the military field,
but also in the security field.
And that, that could change a lot of things in the Middle East.
This new organization could not only prevent attacks from Iran, the cooperation could go
much further including such things as the security of the water supply, the intensive
use of special corps and the prevention of civil wars through the use of peacekeepers.
Of course, it is one thing to want it and quite another to get it.
T2(SHAMBLES, THE USUAL SHAMBLES...)
It is no secret.
Getting the Arab world to agree on major issues is more complicated than getting Vladimir
Putin himself to see reason.
And keep this in mind...
If reaching a military alliance in Asia is already complicated, imagine what it means
to do it in a region where the religious question runs through everything and where in military
and security matters, the interests of the various royal houses often outweigh the general
interests.
But perhaps the biggest stumbling block remains Saudi Arabia.
Relations between Riyadh and Jerusalem have improved greatly, but they remain far more
stagnant than those that Israel has managed to develop with other Arab countries.
For example, Riyadh has not yet established formal diplomatic relations and has decided
to not pay much attention to the Abraham Accords, so the thought of a military or security alliance
seems unthinkable today.
And, of course, for such an alliance to go ahead without its participation would not
be acceptable to the House of Saud either.
Among other things, this would mean losing its leadership role in the Arab world.
That is to say, it is basically stuck on the fence.
And that's not the end of it.
Qatar, which is also a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council, gets along terribly with
the United Arab Emirates, has turbulent relations with Saudi Arabia, and is progressively improving
its bilateral relations with Iran, firstly because it shares large gas fields with Iran
and secondly because Doha hopes to become something of a link between Tehran and Washington.
N7(Qatar's Ambassador to Iran highlights growing bilateral relations – The Peninsula)
N8(Qatar's foreign minister rules out normalization with Israel.
– The Times of Israel)
In the end, these are the major stumbling blocks and perhaps the full plans will never
go ahead.
But today we already know that there is a military structure operating, an alliance
between Israel and the Arab countries.
That and the Israeli authorities have the ambition to play a much more prominent role
in the Middle East.
And that ambition, VisualPolitik fans, is no small matter.
That said, the questions are now over to you: Do you think we will ever see a NATO-style
military alliance in the Middle East?
What do you think Israel's role in military matters may become following the Abraham Accords
and the Negev Dialogues?
Leave us your opinion below, in the comments.
And if you liked this video, don't forget to like and subscribe to our channel so you
don't miss any of our upcoming news.
Once again, thank you for being there.
All the best and see you next time.