Our region is war-torn and fractured. We are facing multiple threats of multiple kinds. This is the most dangerous era I have ever lived through, surpassing the 1991 Gulf War when we came together to defeat a single enemy.
While almost the entire world is shining a spotlight on the so called Islamic State in #Syria and #Iraq, #GCC States must not take their eyes off our neighbourhood’s greatest threat – the Islamic Republic of #Iran and its militias in #Lebanon, #Syria and #Iraq.
It saddens me to observe some Arab countries claiming to stand with us whereas in reality they are either straddling the fence or are covertly in the ayatollahs’ pockets.
It is imperative that transparent Gulf States stick together and be very wary of fair-weather friends, especially at a moment in time when there are those doing their utmost to split us apart, scatter us in different directions to render us vulnerable.
Unfortunately, those enemies are using slick propaganda for the purposes of making us doubt one another. They speak of rifts between the Kingdom of #Saudi_Arabia and the United Arab Emirates when there are none.
The relationship between the Kingdom and the Emirates is based on a shared history, culture and bloodlines. It is unbreakable. Threats to #Saudi_Arabia are the same which threaten the #UAE. #Iran’s ultimate goal is to seize our territories, strip-us of our natural resources and take control of the Holy cities of Mecca and Medina. Rest assured that nothing will come between these two brotherly nations who have always worked as one to hoist the standards of the Muslim and Arab worlds high.
Thanks to the Saudi-led Arab coalition, which has successfully stemmed the march of Shiite #Houthis across #Yemen’s border with #Saudi_Arabia, that route has been blocked. But, recent news reports suggest that #Iran may now be pursuing its Plan B from a different direction. As I write, highly-trained, battle hardened pro-Iranian Shiite fighters from #Lebanon and #Syria are heading to #Iraq to further destabilise #Iraq in support of their Iranian masters.
And according to a report published in Al-Quds Al-Arabi, hundreds of thousands of Iranians are crossing into #Iraq via its ports without passports stamped with entry visas, ostensibly to visit Shiite holy sites. Is this mass relocation being carried out in preparation for #Iran to launch a surprise? The fear is the Iranians (perhaps with a green light from Moscow) are positioning Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces, Iranian foot soldiers and Shiite militias in preparation of a terrorist attack.
#Russia’s goal is to become the dominant regional power and to further his endgame President Vladimir #Putin is throwing his country’s weight behind #Iran. During his meeting last month with #Iran’s Supreme Leader, he presented Ali Khamenei with a replica of #Russia’s oldest handwritten Quran. The commentator Jamal Khashoggi rightly notes the irony of #Putin’s gesture of respect to Islam while in #Iran even as he slams the Turkish President Recep Tayyip #Erdoğan for Islamicising #Turkey.
#Turkey’s shooting down of a Russian plane has provided #Russia with a pretext to go on the warpath against parties within the US-led coalition, accusing several of cooperating with the Islamic State and other terrorists. #Russia’s semi-official Pravda newspaper is being used by Moscow as a propaganda tool. Its columns are filled with direct threats against #Turkey, #Saudi_Arabia and #Qatar for “their involvement in terrorism”! Kashoggi highlights a report in the Echo of Moscow quoting a former adviser to President #Putin calling for attacks on military and oil installations in Saudi and #Qatar.
#Putin, who has never recovered from the disbanding of the mighty Soviet Union, is on a roll following his illegal annexation of Crimea, a move met with little more than a slap on the wrist from the US and its allies. Emboldened, he is calling the shots in #Syria as though he is that country’s leader while ingratiating himself with the world’s greatest terrorist funder, #Iran, which due to its murky affiliations has escaped becoming a target of terrorism. Of course, even terrorists do not bite the hand that feeds them!
Far from providing geopolitical balance in the area, President Barack #Obama’s policy of leading from behind has left a void permitting #Russia to fill as a dangerous aggressor that is not only hand-in-glove with #Iran but one with knives out for Sunni Arab states.
As I have warned again and again in my columns, we must remain alert and prepared for anything. That does not mean we should merely wait and watch. No, the snakes’ heads must be cut before they slither to nest on our own soil. We were burned by the overthrow of the elected government in #Yemen by the emissaries of Tehran and if we do not stem the growing threat in #Iraq, we will have only ourselves to blame.
In order to defend our borders, our coalition must be strengthened and enlarged. If we imagine we can place our trust in global powers, that strove to empower and enrich #Iran via a nuclear deal, we are mistaken because they are driven solely by self-interest. And neither can we rely on other Arab countries to defend us for two reasons.
Firstly, those far away from #Iran’s reach by reasons of geography have different priorities; theirs is to eviscerate #ISIS. Secondly, there are countries suspected of harbouring Iranian or Russian sympathies (or both) which must be weeded out or, at the very least, told to come clean on their loyalties. Our destiny cannot rest with fence-sitters or pretend friends. It is time for all to be open about their allegiances and interests.
The only significant forces in the #GCC are those of the United Arab Emirates and #Saudi_Arabia. We are the shield and the sword of all Gulf States and we are ready to partner with Arab countries proven to be on the same page. It is time for all regional leaderships to be transparent, and those suspected of playing both sides or of hiding their true intentions should be banished behind a virtual Trump-style wall.