” But now that the Taliban anticipates victory, it sees little or no advantage in forging close diplomatic ties with New Delhi, especially given neighboring Pakistan, China and Iran, along with Russia have each expressed a willingness to accept and normalize a future Taliban controlled Afghan government.
In addition, Oman is likely to work more closely with the Saudi leadership in its capacity in having joined UN-led efforts to mediate a ceasefire in Yemen potentially hosting the next round of Iran-Saudi talks.
The GCC states, which were motivated by several factors, most importantly political and sectarian ones, aimed to weaken Iran’s hand and bring Syria, a country predominantly Sunni but ruled by a Nusayri family, back into the Arab sphere of influence.
The summit was seen as an attempt to build a regional alliance to neutralize Iranian influence in Iraq, especially after accusations of Iranian intervention in Iraqi internal affairs.
He believes that the relationship with the United States is strategic to Israel, but he has also noted that Israel’s security comes first, and that Israel should not care about what the world has to say about it vis-à-vis Iran.
Read: China-Iran Treaty: Hydrocarbons Bring the Old Friends Closer Rising Japanese nationalism and the “Chinese threat” The Quad is a Japanese initiative, and while it is in part a response to increasing Chinese influence, it is important to understand that there are other dynamics at play.
On the Chinese side, the Belt and Road Initiative continues to advance, while strategic agreements are being signed with Russia, Pakistan, and Iran with the aim of positioning China at the heart of global supply chains for raw materials and shipping routes.
The Russian initiative comes in the midst of the nuclear talks in Vienna and with the pressure on the Iranian regime from Israeli strikes and military operations - most recently the attack on Iran’s nuclear facility in Natanz and daily airstrikes that target Iran’s militias in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
At the same time, Iran because of its Shiite majority and religious rule, Egypt because of Al-Azhar University and its long-standing influence on global Islam, and Turkey because of its legacy as one of the largest Muslim empires, all have social capital and symbolic legitimacy among Muslims.
President Joe Biden taking the Iran-backed Houthis off the country’s terror list? I believe that the Houthis are a power and a part of Yemen’s reality that we cannot ignore, and therefore they have every right to be involved in a peaceful, negotiated settlement.