World
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to the media following a tour of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on May 5, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Elijah Nouvelage/AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Saudi Arabia next week, marking his first trip since Riyadh and Tehran agreed to restore ties in a landmark agreement brokered by China.
The US State Department on Friday said that Blinken will take part in a US-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) meeting and meet with top Saudi officials to discuss strategic, economic, and security cooperation between the two countries.
The Secretary of State will also co-host a meeting of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS (Islamic State) together with his Saudi counterpart, Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan “to address the continuing threat of ISIS and reaffirm our commitment to ensure its enduring defeat.”
The visit comes amid the warming up of ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, while tension between Washington and Tehran continues to increase. The US has also shifted its policies away from the Middle East towards Russia and China.
Beijing has become increasingly involved in the Middle East, playing a crucial role in mediating between Iran and Saudi Arabia. In a historic agreement in March, Tehran and Riyadh agreed to restore diplomatic ties as well as to work together towards a political solution to the war in Yemen where they have been supporting opposing sides.
There was no mention of Yemen on the agenda of Blinken’s visit to Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia and the US have maintained a long-standing strategic partnership but have found themselves at loggerheads in recent years over oil production and Washington’s criticism of Riyadh’s human rights record.
Recently, relations seem to have improved in light of cooperation between the two countries with evacuations from the conflict in Sudan. Both the US and Saudi Arabia are also working towards brokering a ceasefire between the warring generals during talks in Jeddah.
The normalization of ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel is also expected to be on the agenda. The initiative was launched under the Abraham Accords brokered by former president Donald Trump, resulting in countries including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to normalize ties with Israel. Riyadh has remained reluctant to follow suit, demanding that Israel recognize an independent Palestinian state.
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