A widow of a 9/11 victim used the annual reading of the names of those killed to plead with the Trump administration about Saudi Arabian officials' alleged ties to the terror attack, which the kingdom has dismissed. The big picture: During the New York City ceremony for 9/11's 25th anniversary, Terry Strada slammed Saudi Arabia, which Axios' Barak Ravid reports is actively urging President Trump to assist them with U.S. military action. - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and Trump have maintained a close relationship, while 9/11 families have expressed discomfort over U.S. officials' past engagement with Saudi Arabia. Driving the news: "For 25 years, administration after administration, including leaders in front of us…
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) called President Trump twice Thursday, urging him to launch strikes against the Houthis as the Iran-backed group closed in on a vital Red Sea chokepoint, two U.S. officials told Axios. - Trump declined, and U.S. officials stressed the administration has no plans to intervene directly against the Houthis for now. Why it matters: Oil prices surged Thursday as the Houthis seized a strategic coastal city in Yemen, pushing them closer to the Bab al-Mandab Strait — a vital artery for global trade and Saudi oil exports. - With Iran already disrupting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz , Houthi control of Bab al-Mandab could give Tehran a powerful new point of leverage over the U.S. and its…
The agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan may herald a new Middle East. The post What the Mecca Defense Pact Means appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs What the Mecca Defense Pact Means The agreement between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan may herald a new Middle East. On August 7, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in the holy city of Mecca to sign a new trilateral defense pact . The birth of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement is a significant geopolitical event. It brings together into a security alliance three of the largest and most influential countries in the Middle East. Turkey has the second-largest army in NATO. Pakistan is the only Muslim nation to possess a…Open
AI:Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan have signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, establishing a massive new security alliance that includes NATO's second-largest military power and Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal. This strategic pact functions similarly to NATO's Article 5, declaring that an attack on one signatory is considered an attack against all three, signaling a major shift in Middle Eastern geopolitics as regional powers seek to diversify their security needs away from Washington. As Gulf nations feel increasingly abandoned by the U.S. amidst ongoing tensions with Iran, this "Islamic NATO" aims to create a self-reliant regional architecture that could eventually expand to include other nations like Egypt.Open
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke to President Trump on Saturday and expressed concern over his plans for massive new strikes against Iran , according to two U.S. officials and a third source with knowledge of the call. Why it matters: Trump is seriously considering attacking Iranian energy targets in the coming days in response to Iran's missile strike on a U.S. base in Jordan and its continued disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. He has yet to issue final orders. The big picture: Such an attack could lead to an unprecedented escalation in the five-month war, which has repeatedly paused as Trump opened the door to negotiations — only to resume when those diplomatic efforts failed. Zoom in: Iran has…
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman told Vice President Vance at the White House Wednesday that despite the joint U.S.-Saudi strike on pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, Saudi Arabia still favors de-escalation with Iran, a source familiar with the meeting told Axios. Why it matters: The source said the objective of the meeting was to deliver a message from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) about the war with Iran and the situation in the region. - Saudi Arabia is one of the key U.S. allies in the region. Despite tensions at several points over the last five months, the Saudis have managed to influence President Trump's Iran policy multiple times since the war began. - Prince Khalid, the brother and close confidant of MBS,…
President Trump gave Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) his support for a highly unusual military action against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, according to U.S. officials. Why it matters: The Saudi strike on the Sanaa airport Monday and Houthi retaliatory missile attacks that followed were the most serious cross-border escalation since 2022. They could signal the collapse of a four-year, unofficial truce between the parties. - A renewed military conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis could exacerbate regional tensions and broaden the war between the U.S. and Iran. - The fact that MBS notified Trump in advance and asked for his backing signals that the Saudis are concerned about a larger conflict with the Houthis…
President Trump told leaders of several Arab and other Muslim countries during a Saturday conference call that if a deal to end the Iran war is achieved he wants their nations to sign peace agreements with Israel, per two U.S. officials with direct knowledge of the call. Why it matters: Trump's remarks on Israel and the countries signing onto the Abraham Accords during the call signal the next big step he wants to take in the Middle East after the war . - Trump is aiming mostly at a historic Saudi-Israeli peace agreement, but the current political climate in the region and the upcoming Israeli election make any near term breakthrough extremely difficult. Driving the news: On Saturday, Trump held a phone call with the leaders of Saudi…
The United Arab Emirates is leaving OPEC . Saudi Arabia is ending its splashiest foreign sports venture. The two U.S. allies are in the midst of a messy divorce, even as both face fire from Iran . Why it matters: One year after President Trump's grand tour of the Gulf, the region's vision of a geopolitically stable post-oil future — powered by tourism, AI and American capital — has taken a major blow. - The trillions of dollars in investment pledges that Trump secured on his trip are in limbo. - So is the American "golden age" he claimed would be bankrolled in part with Gulf money. The big picture: Trump's trip may prove the high-water mark for the idea that the future of artificial intelligence, global investment and geopolitics…
A decade after Mohammed bin Salman unveiled his “Vision 2030” program to transform the country’s economy, the kingdom is facing financial strains and reassessing its trajectory.
State of the Union: An Iranian attack destroyed three buildings in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media. The post Iran War Enters 25th Day: Tehran Denied Having ‘Productive’ Talks with U.S. appeared first on The American Conservative .
The Iran War entered its 25th day on Tuesday as Israeli strikes hit energy and water infrastructure across Iran overnight. The strikes come less than a week after President Donald Trump told the Israelis not to repeat strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure. That followed Israeli strikes on the South Pars Gas field, which triggered costly retaliatory strikes from Iran. Iran’s Fars News said strikes on Isfahan damaged a gas administration building and a gas reduction station, along with nearby homes. In Khorramshahr, a projectile reportedly struck the area around a power plant gas line. Iranian media said a desalination facility and the adjacent meteorological office in Bushehr were also hit. Israeli Channel 12 reported at least…Open