The White House today announced its intentions to dramatically deepen military ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states today, saying they will jointly cooperate to deal with “external threats.”
The most dramatic part of this deal is that the White House is likely to add all the GCC nations to the official list of “major non-NATO allies.” (MNNA)
This designation has broad implications on military ties and US provision of advanced arms. Two GCC members, Bahrain and Kuwait, were already MNNAs, but this would be a considerable boost for Saudi Arabia in particular.
The Saudis have been seeking an official US pledge of mutual military defense, and while MNNA theoretically stops a bit short of that, it is likely a distinction without a difference in practice, putting the Saudis and their allies at parity with Israel, Japan, and South Korea.
President Obama did assure, during the summit, that the US would “consider” using military force to defend the GCC, though in practice there’s never been a serious suggestion those nations would face a defensive threat from anyone.
Which means another billions of weapon sales to these illegitimate governments, that is to say, a family owned and operated government and kingdoms with Wahhabism as their constitutional law, if not the Saudis brutal social law will do. This kind of relations by a government calling itself and constitutes itself as democracy is a slap in the face of constitution and democracy.
Obama for a while seemed that he was tired of being an establishment puppet and would start doing what is right. But then recently he's lost it and looks like he wants to end his presidency by doing everything he's ordered by his deranged masters. Here comes war in Syria and war against Russia.
This just gets worse by the minute. While he was moving in the right direction with Iran, this GCC business with Obamas is crazy, particularly after Hersh's report about Saudi payoffs to Pakistan to guarantee the safety of Osama bin Laden while he was there. But the arms lobbies just don't care about whether the Saudis may have had an important role to play in 9/11. They are solely interested in selling munitions and equipment to them and our whore politicians, Democrat and Republican, do their bidding unfailingly. The end of all this – although it will take time to congeal – will be a rebellion that will result in the public trial of these filth in peoples' courts. Envision if you will trash like Schumer or Cotton blubbering out confessions and pleading for their lives.
Wouldn't that be a sight to make the world rejoice!
I have to agree and since the 1980s I have been predicting a violent revolution in the United States at some point in the future.
And it is always something small that ignites the spark. And in this instance it could very well be the ongoing shootings of unarmed people by police where one incident is so outrageous that a violent protest becomes something more.
This is exactly how the student protests in the 1970s erupted across the country.
Unfortunately, violent revolution does not have a very high rate of success historically but the way things are going it appears that this will be the only end result of the abhorrent deprivations of our politicians and business "leaders".
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states today, saying they will jointly cooperate
to deal with "external threats."…
The USG (is) the (external threat). Just look at the mess Iraq is in today.
The entire country is a basket case as the result of the criminal Bush regime's
bogus war based on lies and subterfuge. The arrogance and hyprocrisy of the
Oboomer administration boggles the brain.
This can only increase the likelihood that there will be war against Iran – and soon. This is complete madness. I've commented before that our government has gone rogue but more and more it seems that they've not only gone rogue but insane also. How could this possibly been any worse than if that menopausal wingnut from Alaska had gotten elected President? WTF has happened to the sane people in DC?
AND for something completely off-topic: if the webmaster at Antiwar.com hasn't noticed or been informed, the IntenseDebate comment system has gone, for lack of a better term, bonkers. Multiple instances of a comment.; comments made in reply to a comment placed at the top-level, not nested under the comment replying to… basically acting something like the way Congress works – FUBAR!! Makes responding and even reading more difficult than it is worth. I apologize for placing this here but a link to reach the webmaster is well hidden.
Its nothing new, autocrats, butchers and torturers have always been the US's favourite allies.
Is Obama really this stupid?
To Curmudge; "what has happened to all the sane people in DC"? (That is; if there are any.) Reminded of a quote from "Grapes of Wrath", I think; "where have all the great men gone?". Not much to add to the post's above, other than to lament the "leadership" of that spineless, pathetic, little man in the white house.
We are making so many Major Non NATO Allies that its inevitable they'll end up fighting each other. Israel vs Saudis is likely, but there are others. Policy made with no concern other than the shortest term convenience must end up very inconvenient indeed in just a bit more time.
well said, and poignantly true.
I will tell you what the Turks and the Iranians told me when I worked there – to them, it was hilarious that the Israelis and the Arabs publically hate each other so when they are the same kind of people. It is like the English and the Irish – ready to kill each other until they share a few pints and then they hugging each other's necks
Gotta love them crazy Yanks! The House of Saud slaps Uncle Sam in the face, and he responds, "Thanks. Here's some more bombs."
Weak statement by Jason. Lacks context. Nothing even remotely new here. This was declared “empire property” decades ago.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carter_Doctrine