Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi “So what did the two leaders gain from each other?” the host of a political program produced by the American Al-Hurra TV channel asked me after the conclusion of the Saudi-American summit. I told him that I believed that both King Salman and President Obama achieved most of what they expected. It helps that months of preparations had been done by the concerned government departments, led by Adel Al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs and John Kerry, US State Secretary. At least seven Saudi ministries and their US counterparts, as well as the embassies of the two nations were involved in the process. To appreciate the extent of what has been achieved, let's review the list of agreements that was announced after the royal visit to Washington. • US supports the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen to restore the legitimate Yemeni government. Saudis and Americans see the way out of the crisis through the implementation of the Security Council resolution 2216, the Yemeni National Dialogue agreement, and the Gulf Peace Initiative. Yemeni ports to be put under UN supervision. • Both governments see no role for Bashar Assad in any political settlement and affirm their support for the Geneva 1 peace conference on Syria. The conference called for a transfer of power that does not include the current regime leadership. • US and Saudi Arabia stand side by side against Iranian intervention in Arab countries' internal affairs, ignition of sectarian animosity and sponsoring terrorism. Saudis are promised full military, security and intelligence support, arming and training, to intercept Iranian shipments of missiles and arms to sponsored militias in the region. • The Americans gave assurances to Saudi Arabia regarding the nuclear deal with Iran and the mechanism for checking on its implementation. • Both countries encourage Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi's drive against corruption and for government and political reform. They particularly called for an inclusive government for all Iraqis (Shiites, Sunnis, Arabs, Kurds and others). • The leaders called for a peaceful solution of the Palestinian issue based on the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative. • They also called for elections of a new parliament and president in Lebanon. • Sophisticated military and security equipment will be provided to the Saudi army, intelligence and security apparatus in short order. And the US promised full support against any possible Iranian aggression. • The leaders directed their governments to have more and wider cooperation in many fields, including military, trade, investment, health and culture. • The two countries will continue their alliance in the fight against terrorism and the international campaign against Daesh (the self-proclaimed IS) in Syria and Iraq. This includes an extension of intelligence, security and military cooperation to dry up the human, arms and financial resources of terror organizations. • The leaders announced their commitment to concluded accords and understandings between GCC leaders and President Obama in their Camp David meeting, last May. • They confirmed their agreement that oil markets should be stable for the benefit of both exporters and consumers. The list of announced agreements covers almost all areas of concern in the region. It also satisfies the aspirations of the Saudi and American peoples. Both public and private sectors, as well as academic, health and business fields should benefit from these accords. Sheikh Abdullah Balkhair, who was King Abdulaziz's secretary and translator, told me that the King once said: “We have friends and partners. For national interests, partners come ahead of friends. The Americans are our partners … and they come ahead.” Since the first meeting between the founder of Saudi Arabia and legendary American president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1945, every Saudi King has made it a priority of his country's political strategy to maintain a strong alliance with the United States, the leader of the free world. Still, there are times when partners have different views and interests. They may take different approaches to issues and differ on how to resolve them. Israel has always been one of those dividing matters, as well as the US invasion and occupation of Iraq and American policy toward the Syrian crisis. Now, Iran tops the short list. In all of these cases, it seems that our American partners felt that they knew better, and without consulting us, as President Roosevelt had promised King Abdulaziz that America would do in all Arab issues, they brought misery to our region in the name of goodwill. Today, we hope wisdom prevails and past experience helps in rectifying what went wrong. A lot had to be done on short notice and in a challenging environment to save the region and the world from the effects of corruption, bad management and irresponsible behavior. An alliance of strong nations for a secure, prosperous, peaceful and developed Middle East is very much needed. The Saudi-American alliance can and must lead the way. Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi is a Saudi writer based in Jeddah. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @kbatarfi
