With the US military presence in the Persian Gulf dwindling on the back of Pentagon's recent withdrawal of troops from Saudi Arabia, an important question that the Gulf Arab states need to consider is whether they are to follow the US-imposed anti-Iranian line. For the US, Iran remains an enemy state. Accordingly, the US continues to thrash fresh sanctions, issue warnings to the Iranian navy against any 'misadventure' in the Gulf, and find ways to
block the sale of Iranian oil. For the Saudis and the rest of erstwhile Iran's rival states — the UAE, Kuwait etc — this enmity, while real in its own sense, does no longer reflect the true reality of the Middle Eastern geo-politics. For the Gulf states, the US strategy of "maximum pressure" has not worked to their advantage. If "maximum" economic and political pressure has not worked, nothing will, especially if one is to consider the feeble military potential of the Gulf states vis-à-vis Iran, which means there's a need to approach the situation from a different angle.
As it stands, if Gulf states continue to mindlessly pursue the "maximum pressure" strategy, it will only make future diplomatic initiatives and normalisation of relations difficult. Therefore,
in the wake of US withdrawal from the Middle and relocation of military systems, it is important that the Gulf states exploit the relaxed security scenario and build better relations with Iran. Extended cooperation to combat COVID-19 can provide an additional boost to the fragile diplomatic ties.
