In an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair discussed Joe Biden's election victory and how the president-elect might recalibrate US foreign policy in the Middle East: "The whole issue of the burgeoning relationship between the state of Israel and the Arab states, I think that will continue under a new administration. I think the roots of that are very deep." Blair said that he believes a Biden administration will want to continue these efforts and that there could be similar agreements to come, "The UAE agreement with Israel and Bahrain's agreement with Israel, I think, is the first of many such agreements across the region" He went on to say that in terms of these agreements, "The differences between the previous administration and this one will be less than people think." While there may be less change in some areas, Biden's intention to re-join the Iran nuclear deal could have a substantial effect on the region. Blair discussed the issues around this deal, "A lot of the Arab states and Israel, of course, will say, if we're going to go back to some form of agreement with Iran, we have got to make sure that there are some curbs on the destabilizing behavior of Iran throughout the region." Blair noted that much had changed since the original nuclear deal was signed and that the new administration would have to examine these changes. "I think a lot has changed in these last four years, and a lot has changed inside Iran, where there's no doubt that the regime is in one sense in a weaker position, but, in another sense, the IRGC particularly has strengthened its power. "Its destabilizing behavior around the region has not stopped. And the new administration will want to take account of that have, at the same time as, perfectly naturally, wanting to make sure that the nuclear ambitions of Iran are restrained."
