Israel reportedly in talks with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on establishing four-nation defense alliance.
By Elad Benari , INN
Israel is in talks with the kingdoms of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on establishing a four-nation defense alliance, i24NEWS reported on Thursday.
The reported defense alliance talks likely come in response to the “growing Iranian threat” in the region, specifically regarding its budding nuclear program along with its expanding influence in the Middle East with countries like Syria and Iraq.
The report comes as US President Joe Biden attempts to launch talks with Iran on a return to the 2015 nuclear deal.
Former President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Iran. The Islamic Republic, in turn, has gradually scaled back its compliance with the 2015 deal.
The White House said last week that the US has accepted Europe’s offer to mediate conversations with Iran regarding the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran has said it is studying the European Union proposal but has yet to respond to it.
Jerusalem does not have official diplomatic relations with Riyadh but the UAE and Bahrain signed a historic normalization deal with Israel in September 2020 known as the US-brokered Abraham Accords.
Earlier this week, it was reported that officials from Saudi Arabia and Israel recently held telephone calls which centered around Saudi Arabia’s concern over Biden’s policy on Iran.
The Middle East must go it alone. USA has turned its back on Israel and Saudi Arabia. Soon USA will be energy dependent again on OPEC. Sad but true.