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Doha
American efforts to create a new alliance of Middle East nations are faltering amid regional divisions owing to an unjust blockade of Qatar, according to US and Arab officials.
Once touted as an Arab version of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the so-called Middle East Strategic Alliance, or MESA, is no longer expected to bring countries together with a NATO-style agreement holding that an attack on one member would be seen as an act of war by all the others, according to a report in Wall Street Journal.
The Trump administration is focused instead on less ambitious goals, such as setting up trade deals and creating joint military training centres.
Abandoning the idea of an “Arab NATO” with broader ambitions has dimmed enthusiasm among key players, say Middle East officials involved in the discussions.
“There was a lot of excitement and enthusiasm at the very beginning,” said one Gulf official. “But, as time went on, I think the enthusiasm and momentum has just slowed down.”
For now, the alliance is focusing on Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman.
“Right now, we’re waiting for more momentum on MESA,” said a second Gulf official involved in the discussions.
Trump administration officials describe the alliance as a work-in-progress. “It’s an airplane that’s being built as it’s flying,” said a senior State Department official.
According to Al-Jazeera net, the establishment of this alliance was hampered by the great divisions because of the blockade of Qatar, and other Arab countries are resisting efforts to annex Israel to the alliance.
Anthony Zinni, a retired Marine Corps general tapped by Trump to lead talks on the alliance, said it was clear early on that the idea of creating an “Arab NATO” was too ambitious. So he tried to tamp down expectations.
“There was no way that anybody was ready to jump into a NATO-type alliance,” he said, adding that “One of the things I tried to do was kill that idea of a Gulf NATO or a Middle East NATO.”
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22/02/2019
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