Arabic News Digest As custom has it, American presidents choose their inaugural foreign state visits in line with the interests of the country. Therefore, it would be safe to assume that US president Donald Trump’s decision to begin his overseas state visits in Saudi Arabia denotes the level of mutual interests between the two nations, noted the Saudi Arabian columnist Salman Al Dossari in the London-based daily Asharq Al Awsat.
Surely, this will not be a protocol visit like any other, the writer said. In fact, the US president is scheduled to hold three summits in Jeddah that will explain his administration’s desire to re-position the United States in the Middle East, to contain Iran’s expansion and to reject extremism and terrorism.
“The president has sent a number of positive messages to America’s historical allies and partners in this region and in the Islamic world. Equally important, he addressed several warning messages to Iran and extremist groups as well as to their supporting countries,” the writer said.
The quality and the timing of the US presidential visit is undoubtedly sufficient to undo the damage that befell the alliance between Saudi Arabia and the United States over the past eight years. It is clear that the visit of Saudi Arabia’s deputy crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, to Washington and his meeting with president Trump reinvigorated Saudi-US relations as it seems that both sides are in agreement on several issues.
“The Trump administration is keen to have its fingers in the Middle East. The state visit would be a strong indication to a more focused effort to isolate Iran, the greatest supporter of terrorism as per the new US administration,” said Al Dossari.
For his part, Mohammed Al Hammadi, editor of Abu Dhabi’s daily newspaper Aletihad noted that following years of absence, Mr Trump is seeking to reclaim America’s role in the Middle East region, to destroy ISIL and other terrorist groups and to deter Iran’s illegitimate activities in the region. This can only mean a refocusing of mutual objectives between the US and Saudi Arabia is under way.
“Since the visit is highly significant, the Iranian regime and the Muslim Brotherhood will obviously launch a systematic assault against the US president and the kingdom. In fact, we have come to expect such counter attacks from them against anything that is in the best interest of this region,” he said.
Tehran and the Brotherhood are still reeling from two successive blows this month: the first when Mohammed bin Salman explicitly accused the Brotherhood’s media and their destructive role in the region. The second blow was the announcement of Mr Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia.
It is no secret that the Brotherhood is the source of terrorism. They are against everyone in our region. They will make every effort to distort Mr Trump’s official visit to Riyadh. They are already trying to undermine the significance of the US administration’s step towards the Middle East, which only confirms its leadership and pivotal role in the Islamic world.
“President Trump may have many internal and external opponents, but as far as the Middle East is concerned, it is noticeable that his policy towards the region is better than his predecessor’s – so far at least. His position vis-à-vis terrorism is clear. He has a clear position vis-à-vis Iran and he may have a clearer vision of the Arab-Israeli conflict,” Al Hammadi noted.
The US president is required not to stand against Arabs in their most existential causes, and not to stand with the other side against Arab strategic interests. At the same time, he is required to be unrelenting in the fight against terrorism and extremism.
Arabs and Muslims for their part are advised to benefit from the presence of the US president in the region. It is essential that he returns to Washington fully aware that his allies in our region are trustworthy and reliable, the writer said.
* Translated by Racha Makarem
rmakarem@thenational.ae
