Michael H Fuchs: The latest Iran-Saudi flare-up exposes Trump's bankrupt Middle East policy

By Dilip -
The fact that the United States is up in arms over an attack with no reported casualties on an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia – while at the same time supporting Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen that has killed tens of thousands – tells us everything we need to know about how messed up US priorities in the Middle East are…. Trump summed up why he always sides with Riyadh, even after the Saudi leader ordered the murder of US journalist Jamal Khashoggi: “Saudi Arabia pays cash.”

One of the most devastating results of US policy has been the humanitarian disaster in Yemen. Because Saudi Arabia entered the war on one side, while Iran supports the other, the United States has blindly followed Saudi Arabia in fueling this conflict that is starving children and killing innocent civilians. The conflict has taken the lives of at least tens of thousands of people, and a United Nations panel recently said that all sides might be committing war crimes.

Israel – and Trump’s relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu – are at the center of this as well. Israel is a close and important ally, but Trump and Netanyahu have personalized, politicized and radicalized the US-Israeli relationship. While Trump attempts to use the relationship as a political wedge by falsely painting his opponents as enemies of Israel, Netanyahu pushes for conflict with Iran and takes steps that make peace with Palestinians all but impossible – steps that Trump openly supports. The two feed off each other and support one another’s agendas, which are bad for the region.... 
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/sep/18/trump-yemen-saudi-arabia-middle-east-iran

Trump's deference to Saudi Arabia
Juan Cole: Trump Awaits orders from Saudis; and Why the Houthis could have Done It

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