NNA – Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considered that Saudi Arabia going in the wrong direction by restoring relations with Tehran and asked that Washington expands its involvement in the Middle East.
“Those who partner with Iran partner with misery. Look at Lebanon, look at Yemen, look at Syria, look at Iraq,” Netanyahu said in an interview with Hadley Gamble on CNBC last Wednesday. “95% of the problems in the Middle East emanate from Iran,” he claimed.
After seven years of strained ties, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed on March 10 to restore diplomatic relations and reopen missions in respective countries after a series of talks brokered in Beijing, China under the auspices of Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday.
Israelis considered the step an additional diplomatic achievement for Tehran and presented a new set of challenges for the Israeli regime. Israeli officials have expressed deep concerns over the event, while the occupation’s media described it as a major blow to the plans of “Tel Aviv” and the United States.
“Tel Aviv and Washington in the past years hoped to exploit the rivalry between Riyadh and Tehran in order to establish an Israeli-Arab axis against Iran’s efforts to create a nuclear weapon,” Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said earlier this month.
“The announcement of the agreement, which was achieved with the mediation of China, dealt a severe blow to these hopes.”
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud invited Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to visit the kingdom, to which the latter accepted and also invited Bin Salman to make an official visit to Tehran.
Adding salt to the Israeli wound, Palestinian media reported earlier that a delegation that includes Hamas political bureau chairman Ismail Haniyeh, the group’s foreign affairs chief Khaled Mashal, and officials Mousa Abu Marzook and Khalil al-Hayya, landed in the Saudi city of Jeddah late Monday.
Commenting on the matter, Netanyahu said, “I think it has probably a lot more to do with the desire to de-escalate or even eliminate the long-standing conflict in Yemen. I think that Saudi Arabia, the leadership there, has no illusions about who are their adversaries, and who are their friends.”
The geopolitical shifts in the region come as the occupation entity is facing historic internal and external crises represented by political and social rifts within and the establishment of a multi-front bloc by the Axis of Resistance.
Beijing achieved a diplomatic breakthrough in the region after it brokered the Iranian-Saudi rapprochement deal, and in the global arena after it offered to mediate a truce treaty between Ukraine and Russia and proposed a 12-point peace plan.
China recently also made its attempts to land an agreement between the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian Authority, a plan with next to minimum chances of success considering that most Palestinians confirm that almost the whole of Palestine is occupied by the entity and the only way out is bringing back all the stolen land.
Netanyahu denied awareness of Beijing’s initiative on that matter.
“I’m not aware of any specific offer of this kind,” he told Gamble. “Look, we respect China, we deal with China a great deal. But we also know we have an indispensable alliance with our great friend the United States.”
In the last few weeks, “Tel Aviv’s” plans to form an anti-Iran bloc in the region received a critical hit after Arab countries that signed the “Abrahamic Accords” such as the UAE and Bahrain, and which it relied on to fight Tehran, have re-established ties with the Islamic Republic and are on the way to do so with Iran’s ally Syria.
“We’d like very much to have peace with Saudi Arabia. Because I think it would be another huge quantum leap for peace,” the Israeli PM claimed. “We would like to expand the circle of peace to its totality.”
On the potential of ties with Riyadh, Netanyahu said, “I think the sky’s the limit. And even the sky’s not the limit, because there are many opportunities in space as well.”
US must commit
The U.S. has long attempted to mediate a rekindling of Israeli and Saudi ties, which has lingered out of reach as Riyadh seeks a resolution to the statehood of Palestinian territories. A day before the Saudi-Iran announcement, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported that Riyadh had requested U.S. security guarantees and help with developing a civilian nuclear program in exchange for clinching an agreement with “Israel”.
The United States had always backed anti-Iran measures in the region, including supporting ties between the Israeli occupation and Arab regimes in hopes of forming one military black to protect US-Israeli interests and fight Tehran.
“The better the relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors, the better for everybody,” US President Joe Biden said on March 10, commenting on the resumption of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia and its impact on “Tel Aviv”.
Stability and security in the Middle East are “key pillars” of Biden’s policy, White House spokesperson Karine-Jean Pierre claimed later that day.
“I think that not only Israel but I think in many ways most of the … countries in the Middle East would welcome an American, not merely the American involvement in the Middle East which has been ongoing, but a greater engagement of America in the Middle East,” Netanyahu stressed.
“I think it’s very important for the United States to be very clear about its commitment and engagement in the Middle East.”
Americans lost trust in Netanyahu
After the Israeli Prime Minister took power, the Biden administration was ready to ditch the “radical nationalists” in power, such as the Israeli Police Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, while holding Netanyahu accountable for all their decisions.
Biden appeared to take the Israeli leader at his word when he pledged to walk straight. However, his government continued with its legislative chaos. That said, US Ambassador Tom Nides delivered stark warnings in private.
Washington’s gloves came off after Netanyahu fired Security Minister Yoav Gallant, referred to as the sanest between the “radical Israeli political arena.” Thus, “Israel”, the US’ one dependable ally, as well as Middle East security, was left in the hands of Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, the man who encouraged wiping out the Palestinian West Bank village of Huwara.
For the first time, Washington has lost trust in an Israeli leader. The administration is not confident that Netanyahu is making rational decisions and believes that the leader has no control over his government and coalition.
United States might not be there for ‘Israel’
Netanyahu’s remarks on Washington come just within a week after former Israeli occupation security advisor Yaakov Amidror considered that war with Iran is increasingly probable, pointing out that “Israel” needs to prepare an attack without the help of the United States.
“Iran is more sure of itself. It has managed to sign a number of agreements with Arab states. The world is starting to look different,” referring to the agreements signed by Saudi Arabia and the UAE to restore diplomatic ties with Iran.
“America is not the same America in terms of its presence, and the Iranians see that. The US has much greater problems than the Middle East. The world looks at Israel differently.”
Amidror’s fears were echoed this week by the former chief of the Israeli Military Intelligence (Aman), General Aharon Ze’evi-Farkash, who warned that the United States might not provide “Israel” with weapons in any upcoming war.
The General stressed that relations with the US are critical to Israeli national security, warning that these relations are currently at risk due to Netanyahu’s judicial reforms.
His comments came in reference to the recent rocket launches from Gaza, South Lebanon, and Syria, which all occurred within just a few days, in response to the continued Israeli aggression on Palestinian worshippers performing Ramadan religious practices in the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque.
“This is one of the few times that we ask the political echelon to beware of a potential big war,” he said.
“I can clearly say, based on intelligence information, that the enemies recognize there is a widening rift here. Some of us recognize this,” Ze’evi-Farkash added, referring to the internal political and social crises facing the Israeli occupation. — News Agencies