Biden: Why I'm Going to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

-         My administration is working to deepen relations and steps toward normalization between Israel and the Arab world, and to expand them at the Jeddah meeting, where I will be next Friday... also the first president to fly from Israel to Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where leaders from across the region will meet, to point to the possibility of a more stable and integrated Middle East, with the United States playing a vital leadership role..where my friend King Abdullah of Jordan recently pointed to the "new atmosphere" in the region, where countries ask, "How can we connect with one another, work with one another"....! These words, some of which were spoken by the American president.. Joe Biden..appear in an article whose details I present below:

-        President Joe Biden writes in The Washington Post on the evening of Saturday 9-7-2022...an article explaining his point of view.....titled..."Why I am going to Saudi Arabia"? Its summary states: that he is going to strengthen the important interests of the United States of America...in that important region...whose stability and integration benefit Americans in many ways....most importantly its location and its waterways essential for trade and supply chains relied upon by Americans.....also that its energy resources are vital, which mitigate the impact of the Russian war on Ukraine on global supplies of that energy...that the existence of a cooperative Middle East through diplomacy and cooperation..keeps at bay the specter of terrorism and extremism or the triggering of new wars, which could place new burdens on American military forces and their families...and this is what I will continue to avoid such scenarios – the outbreak of new wars and terrorism -..I will continue to pursue intensive diplomacy...to achieve these goals including face-to-face meetings..!

-        President Biden explained in his remarks..that the Middle East (now) is more stable and secure than what he inherited from the previous Trump administration...18 months ago..! .at that time the U.S. embassy in Baghdad was attacked with rockets, and attacks against American forces and diplomats there increased....fourfold during the previous year ..despite B-52 bombers flying from the United States .....but they did not succeed in deterring such attacks....!

-        As for Yemen, according to President Biden...., the war there had been escalating, creating one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with no political process on the horizon to end the fighting...

-        After (a predecessor withdrew from a successful nuclear agreement).!....., Iran passed a law imposing an accelerated acceleration on its nuclear program. After that, when the previous administration (the Trump administration)... sought to condemn Iran for this action in the United Nations Security Council, the United States found itself isolated and alone.....!

·       What did President Biden and his administration do in response in this region (the Middle East) ..

-         In my first weeks as president, our intelligence and military experts warned that the region was under severe strain. It needed urgent, intensive diplomacy. To restore deterrence, I ordered airstrikes in response to attacks on our forces, and began serious diplomatic outreach to achieve a more stable region.

-        In (Iraq), we ended the U.S. combat mission, and shifted our military presence to focus on training Iraqis, while maintaining the global coalition against the Islamic State that we formed when I was vice president, which is now dedicated to preventing ISIS from reemerging. We also responded to threats against Americans. The rate of Iran-backed attacks has fallen sharply compared with two years ago. And last February, in Syria, we expelled ISIS leader Haj Abdullah, demonstrating America's ability to eliminate terrorist threats regardless of where they try to hide.!

-         In (Yemen), I appointed an envoy, and engaged with leaders across the region, including with the King of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, to lay the groundwork for a truce. After a year of our sustained diplomacy, that truce is now in place, and life-saving humanitarian assistance is reaching the cities and towns that had been under siege. As a result, the past few months in Yemen..... have been the most peaceful period in seven years...!

-        With regard to (Iran), we reengaged with allies and partners in Europe and around the world to reverse our isolation. Now Iran is isolated, until it returns to the nuclear agreement that my predecessor abandoned, and there is no plan to replace it. Last month, more than 30 countries joined us to condemn Iran's lack of cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency regarding its past nuclear activities. My administration will continue to increase diplomatic and economic pressure until Iran is ready to return to compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement, and I remain prepared to do so...!

-        In (Israel), we helped end the war in Gaza—which could have lasted months—in just 11 days..... We worked with Israel, Egypt, Qatar, and Jordan to keep the peace without allowing terrorists to rearm....!. We also rebuilt American relations with the Palestinians, by working with Congress, where my administration restored nearly $500 million to support the Palestinians ..!, while passing the largest aid package for Israel—more than $4 billion—in history. And this week, an Israeli prime minister spoke with the president of the Palestinian Authority for the first time in five years.....!

-        In (the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), we reversed the blank-check policy we inherited. I released the intelligence community report on the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, and imposed new sanctions, including on the Saudi Rapid Intervention Force involved in his killing, and issued 76 visa bans under a new law that prevents entry to anyone to the United States involved in harassing dissidents abroad. My administration has made clear that the United States will not tolerate foreign threats and harassment of dissidents and activists by any government. ....We also advocated for American citizens who were unjustly detained in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ....long before I took office. They have since been released, and I will continue to press for the lifting of restrictions on their travel....!( What did President Biden say about the importance of Saudi Arabia to the United States...!

-        From the beginning, my aim was to recalibrate the relationship—but not to sever it—with a country that has been a strategic partner for 80 years.....!. Today, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia helped restore unity among the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries, fully supported the truce in Yemen and is now working with (my experts)..., to help stabilize oil markets with other OPEC producers........ I know there are many who disagree with my decision to travel to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Yet my views on human rights are clear and long-standing, and fundamental freedoms are always on the agenda when I travel abroad, as they will be on this trip, just as they will be in Israel and the West Bank....!

-        As president, my job is to keep our country strong and safe. We must confront Russian aggression, put ourselves in the best possible position to outcompete China, and work for greater stability in other parts of the world. To do these things, we must engage directly with the countries (that can affect those outcomes.)..... The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is one of those countries....., and when I meet with Saudi leaders on Friday, my goal will be to strengthen a strategic partnership going forward based on shared interests and responsibilities, while also standing up for core American values...!

-        Of course, the region remains full of challenges: Iran's nuclear program, support for proxy groups, the Syrian civil war, food security crises exacerbated by the Russian war against Ukraine, terrorist groups that remain active in a number of countries, political stagnation in Iraq and Libya, and Lebanon and human rights standards that remain behind in many countries of the world. We must address all of these issues. When I meet with leaders from across the region, I will make clear how important it is to make progress in these areas.

-        And yet, compared with what it was 18 months ago, the region is less strained and more integrated. former adversaries have restored relations. Joint infrastructure projects are building new partnerships...and Iraq, which for a long time was a source of proxy conflicts and regional competition, is now functioning (as a platform for diplomacy), including between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Iran...!

I wonder, on my part (the author of this post)....about the Arab Peace Initiative...which Saudi Arabia launched at the Arab Summit conference in Beirut in March 2002...and which at the time drew controversy because the famous American journalist Thomas Friedman, who usually writes a column in The New York Times....was the one who drafted its texts in an article of his in The New York Times on 15-1-2002. It was said that it was later reproduced by the Saudis....(according to analysts).! Is this Arab initiative still in force..or did it fade away after the conclusion of some normalization agreements with Israel...(the Abraham Accords)...after Arab officials carried it for two decades....without any echo being heard for it..! Will it be revised and reissued in a new guise...that would be fit for use to strengthen the integration of the new Middle East..including Israel as a center..leadership..!

It remains to be clarified that the Zionist journalist Thomas Friedman referred to above said to one of the newspapers published in the Middle East on 3-3-2021: "That normalization is the lifeline for bin Salman"..) Will this advice be implemented at the Jeddah conference...?