The Trump Administration has been annoyed at Saudi Arabia’s inability to stabilize oil prices at a level high enough to ensure US producers a profit, and in a move that appears to be retaliation based on those tensions, the US is starting to pull military assets out of Saudi Arabia.
Officials announced on Thursday that the US will be withdrawing two Patriot missile batteries, along with a number of warplanes from the Saudi desert, along with other air defenses. The assets were placed in the area in recent months to “counter Iran.”
The US buildup in Saudi Arabia began after a Yemeni missile hit oil-producing regions. Saudis blamed Iran, and the US sent forces there to “deter” them. US-Iran tensions over Iraq ultimately led to more deployments into the area.
Putting troops there appears to have given the US the leverage to pull troops out of there, and with Saudi efforts to try to get oil prices back up largely unsuccessful, the US appears to have decided that this will coax them into action.
As a security matter, this is unlikely to matter, as there was no indication that Iran or anyone else was really liable to attack the Saudis. This should also mean no real added security premium on the price of oil, though since the US goal is a price increase, any increase from the pullout would be welcomed.
Good. Maybe Yemen can get them to cut production… Did it before
Best way to cut KSA’s oil production is to blow up their oil fields. 🙂
The Patriot Missiles are useless anyway.
Well, the MIC certainly didn’t want Iranian missiles to hit the Saudi oil fields while the “Patriot” missile defense was in place. Looks like a setup.
For once the Don’s petulance pays off. Now if all the places where we have our kazillion bases pisses him off, maybe we’ll stumble into peace.
Obviously the “Iran threat” has been nonsense all along.
I was truly hoping that our understanding of US-Saudi relations would be by now in a much higher level.
After all, we had a chance to follow the developments — if not since 2015, then at least since 2017 when the relations started to bifurcate.
Even though open sources are plentiful — all commentariat is stuck in a weird, willfully unobservant mode.
This one pretty much follows the pattern.
We have been engaged in struggle with Saudi Arabia since June 2017. You would think somebody would notice? Before that date, the atrocities in Yemen, funding Al-Qaeda, then Taliban, then a garden variety of Salafi movements, and ISIS, the jewel of the crown — none were laid at Saudi doorstep. No, no.
Hillary founded Syrian High Negotiating Committee in Riyadh, and all was going swimmingly well. After Russia’s entry into Syria, it was not any more. And between Russia pushing ISIS into then US air-controlled parts of Syria, and Iraq reliance in Iranian and Russian intelligence — ISIS was reduced to their centers in Mosul and Raqqa.
Then came Trump, delivering bad news to our darling, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin NAYEF. The bad news was — US is abandoning the Sunni state idea across Iraq-Syria border (we concocted a better plan with Kurds).
And Trump was not to have Russia, Syria and Iraq be victorious over ISIS — no, he was going to be the ISIS slayer. For Saudi establishment it was a CATASTROPHE.
Not just the money, but their entire belief system into American dominance over Middle East has crumbled. It eroded after the fall of Mubarak — and now it crumpled. The last advice Trump gave to the sinking darling MBN was to blame it all on — Qatar! And he did, Qatar, shrugged it off — and Saudi establishment made a FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE and shifted its geopolitical orientation to rebalance relationship with other powers.
The person to invite all the thunderbolts from US was King’s son, MBS. All the internal divisions were exploited to get him down. But he immediately wrecked the power of Wahhabi establishment through hand-picked reforms popular at home. That was a clear signal that funding for Sunni militancy was over.
Our media even rejoiced in hope that taking on Wahhabis would bring him down. We pinned our hopes on Kashoggi, but Saudi establishment backed MBS up. We pinned hope in UAE dislodging Saudis from Yemen, then even pinned hopes on secret talks with Houthis.
But the last one was very direct. About two weeks before oil crash — and it was barely reported — our former darling MB NAYAF was arrested for plotting a coup. Our media is EXPERT at dissembling— the event was reported merely as arrests — yet another MBS tantrum. And when lists of arrested was given, MB NAYEF’s name was always LAST. One would think that such a figure — former Crown Prince, former graduate of FBI school, and frequent guest of Western establishment would be listed first. Saudis pointed finger at US.
Two weeks later, Saudis crash oil prices,
Saudi Arabia was not to be drawn into the war with Iran. Saudis cannot afford that — especially as the defense mechanism in place was proven inadequate.
What we see now is the outcome of a protracted struggle since the end of 2017.
I do not think it helped when Saudis invited Russian experts last November to join their investigation of September’s bombing of Saudi oil facilities.
The problem with the price of oil is — it cannot be returned to its previous high. Much of the world’s production capacities will remain shuttered for a while due to the reduced demand globally. Retooling — such as moving supply chains out to Vietnam and India, will take years, and in the interim , China is moving speedily into 5G based industrial revamping, making their production cheaper and higher quality.
There are just no simple givens in the changing world.
But what does NOT help is sticking firmly with the comfortable — what we think we know. Be that Saudi Arabia or anything else.
Lol, spanky heightens tensions, allegedly removes assets he deployed himself, and peace train trumpsters call it progress.
When did the withdrawal start and what actually was removed???
This is FAKE news by the US Administration for political purposes and home consumption only.
Sounds like a largely feckless game of hokey-pokey. You put pointless missiles in, you take pointless missiles out, you do the hokey-pokey and you shake the agitprop about….
it’s obvious that the real reason for the removal is……The Saudi’s stopped the rental payment for the missiles, more soon to follow, it’s the Saudi’s who are telling the USA to leave ????
… So when is Trump putting them back in??