Broken Hearts Club: 6 Allies America Needs to Divorce

[shrimant]

Thanks bharti

you are welcome ****.

 

[hunter_hunted]

you are welcome ****.

Well im Pakistani not ****. Im from Pakistan so im pakistani. You need to get your head checked

 

[Yizhi]

U.S. officials make much of shared values while issuing military guarantees and writing lavish checks to scores of nations. No one can mistake Saudi Arabia as a country that America has much in common with other than commerce in oil and the occasional common enemy, such as Osama bin Laden.

However, no alliance is necessary for the two states to cooperate when their interests coincide. Indeed, the Saudis must sell oil to survive: they will cash anyone’s check, friend or foe. And when the monarchy is under threat, it will respond vigorously, even ruthlessly, without outside prodding.

When it comes to values, Riyadh is an extraordinary embarrassment to the United States. Essentially a totalitarian state, the monarchy plunders people, brutalizes political opposition, suppresses religious expression, and even exports Sunni tyranny—to next door Bahrain, for instance. The late King Abdullah was hailed as a moderate and modernizer, but that was only in the context of one of the least free societies on earth. And his successor King Salman seems determined to halt if not reverse the minuscule progress of the last two decades.

It’s time send Riyadh a text message breaking up. The two governments can still cooperate where appropriate. But there should be no more presidential visits to pay respectful obeisance to the Saudi throne. There should be no more intimate, hand-holding meetings at the president’s retreat. The U.S. military no longer should be treated as an inexpensive bodyguard for the al-Saud family, ready to do Riyadh’s bidding.

an old piece on US-Saudi:
Why Saudi Arabia and the U.S. don’t see eye to eye in the Middle East

It is this ongoing nuclear negotiation with Iran that poses the principal threat to an aligned United States and Saudi Arabia. An Iranian deal would undercut Saudi Arabia’s leadership over fellow Gulf States, as other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members like Kuwait and the UAE would welcome resurgent trade with Iran. At the same time, Iran would emerge over the longer term as the chief competitor for influence across the broader region, serving as the nexus of Shi’ite power. The Saudis would find themselves most directly threatened by this Shi’ite resurgence within neighboring Bahrain, a majority Shi’ite state ruled by a Sunni regime that is backstopped by the Saudi royals.

The bottom line: the Saudis are actively competing with Iran for influence throughout the Middle East. That’s why the Saudis have the most at stake from any easing of sanctions on Iran, any normalization of relations with the West, or any nuclear breakthrough that gives Iran the ultimate security bargaining chip. The Saudis have reaped the benefits of an economically weak Iran — and they are not prepared to relinquish that advantage. Ultimately, any deal that exchanges Iranian economic security for delays in Iran’s nuclear program is a fundamental problem for Saudi Arabia — as is any failed deal that allows sanctions to unravel.

 

[opruh]

America is falling and China is rising, Philippines must be smart in choosing sides.

 

[Keel]

Why Pakistan is not on the list?
Pakistan is a very useful peg to rein in India's hegemony in the area and it also prevents her from total dependence on China
One stone two birds

 

[Shotgunner51]

Why Pakistan is not on the list?
Pakistan is a very useful peg to rein in India's hegemony in the area and prevent her from total dependence on China
One stone two birds

Yup, I guess that's why US will/should maintain Pakistan as an ally.

 

[Tshering22]

America is falling and China is rising, Philippines must be smart in choosing sides.

Philippines does not have any interest in bigger geopolitics. They are a small peaceful island sitting in the southeast Asian region. They currently need to focus on development and economic reforms that would allow better manufacturing and production in their country.

Even as a US ally, it was never against anyone for no reason. China has issues with them over their territory which is why there are tensions.