Extremist Islamic groups in the Middle East come and go. When they go — as has the Islamic State (ISIS) — the regional void left quickly fills. Most often, and usually through proxies, the “filler” is Iran.
Its leaders have forewarned us of their goals: initial rule of the region; ultimate rule of an Islamic-dominated world.
A recent Middle East trip by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) confirmed for him that Tehran is not idly boasting. And the upcoming U.S. visit by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), 32, suggests Graham is not alone in concerns about Iranian mullahs’ increasingly long reach.
Graham criticizes both President Barack Obama and President Donald Trump for creating an environment favorable to Iranian manipulation. While Obama spent eight years playing nice with the mullahs, suggesting other regional players learn to “share the neighborhood” and opening doors for ISIS, Tehran made significant advances. Though Trump recognizes the mullahs’ objectives, Graham fears a coherent strategy for combating Iran’s growing influence in post-ISIS Iraq and Syria is lacking. Meanwhile, Iran — obviously helped by Obama’s nuclear deal giving it billions of dollars in cash — helps fund its proxies: Hezbollah in Lebanon for a war with Israel and Houthi rebels in Yemen — where Saudi military involvement seeks to contain them.
This year, the U.S.-Saudi Arabia alliance turns 75 years old — representing a period of ups and downs. But whenever both nations perceived a common threat — such as Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, leading to the Persian Gulf War — they united to successfully end it. The Saudis helped form an Arab coalition to support U.S. efforts to free Kuwait, pursuant to a UN resolution, when Hussein refused to withdraw after invading in 1990. A 40-day air bombardment followed by a four-day ground war generated a decisive coalition victory. READ MORE
