President Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates is an opportunity for the United States to redefine power in the Middle East in a way that puts America first.
For too long, the nations of this region have been dependent on Washington. Our troops defend them. Our navy protects them. Thousands of American lives and billions of U.S. dollars have been lost in the deserts there.
For years, Trump has been telling the Europeans that they need to do more for their own defense. NATO is an extortion racket that allows Europe to get off scot-free while we foot the bill for their defense. Why are we not sending the same message to the Middle East?
Until now, these countries have been content to play checkbook diplomacy. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have pledged to invest $600 billion and $1.4 trillion, respectively, in the United States over the next 10 years. Qatari investment in the U.S. has been critical to making us the world's largest LNG exporter. Collectively, they account for more than 20 percent of U.S. arms sales abroad. On top of that, Saudi Arabia has said that it will purchase an additional U.S. weapons package worth $100 billion.
All of which is great, but these countries can and should do more. For too long, they have waited for the United States to come to their rescue and do the heavy lifting. It's time for the Gulf and key Arab states to take the lead in the region with U.S. support when needed. They need to step up so that we can step back.
American blood and treasure should be spent in America first, not on fights in faraway lands that don't concern us. It's one thing to buy U.S. military equipment, but it's a totally different thing to use them. Tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers and our most advanced weapons are currently deployed throughout the Middle East, from Syria to Iraq and in countries all along the Arabian Gulf.
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The good news is that the leaders of these three countries recognize this and are doing something about it. The collective value of their sovereign wealth funds is a staggering $2.5 trillion, which they deploy strategically to project power. Egypt for example, the Middle East's most populous nation, would collapse without Gulf aid. Their combined foreign investment in the United States tops $10 billion, and they have pledged to invest an additional $2 trillion over the next 10 years.They account for more than 20 percent of arms purchases from the U.S. -- a statistic that will be boosted by the reported $100 billion sale to Saudi Arabia.
Beyond dollars, however, they have begun to use their political and military power in support of the United States. Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani (Qatar), President Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (UAE), and Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman Al-Saud (Saudi Arabia) have all demonstrated a penchant for assertiveness and risk taking.
Qatar was instrumental in facilitating the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and engineering cease-fires in Gaza.The UAE plays a decisive role in the security of Yemen, Sudan and East Africa. Saudi Arabia's Mohamed bin Salman is running OPEC and hosting the G-20.The good offices of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have resulted in the release of Americans detained in Afghanistan, Russia and Iran. By virtue of its economic power, political weight and future potential, Saudi Arabia is the unrivaled leader of the Arab world. There is no road to sustainable peace that does not pass through Riyadh.
And these leaders are prepared to do more. There have been detailed discussions with the UAE about administering the Gaza strip and reforming the Palestinian authority. The UAE is also mediating secret talks between Israel and Syria. Qatar and Saudi Arabia have paid off Syria's debt to the World Bank, allowing much needed aid to flow into the war-torn country.
Any viable solution to the region's challenges must include Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The long-term futures of Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen and Egypt -- and with them the security of the Eastern Mediterranean, Suez Canal, Red Sea and Arabian Gulf -- to a significant degree depend on the three countries that President Trump is visiting. They alone have both the financial resources and political power necessary to rebuild destroyed infrastructure, to forge workable agreements, and to maintain lasting solvency and stability.
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