CIA Director William Burns visited Saudi Arabia earlier this week to express frustration over Riyadh’s surprise normalization deal with Tehran that was brokered by Beijing, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
According to the Journal, Burns told Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that the US “has felt blindsided” by Riyadh’s rapprochement with Iran as well as Syria, two nations under crippling US economic sanctions.
Following the deal with Iran, Saudi Arabia is poised to normalize with Syria. Riyadh is expected to invite Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to an Arab League summit it’s hosting in May. The Biden administration is against regional countries upgrading ties with Syria as it prefers to keep the country isolated as US policy is to prevent reconstruction.
A US official told Reuters that Burns also discussed intelligence cooperation with Riyadh. “The director reinforced our commitment to intelligence cooperation especially in areas of counterterrorism,” the official said.
Also on Thursday, Saudi Arabia and Iran’s foreign ministers met in Beijing, marking the highest-level meeting between the two countries since when they severed diplomatic ties in 2016. At the meeting, they agreed to reopen their embassies and to work toward other forms of cooperation.
At a press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said Beijing was ready to continue mediating between the two sides. “We are ready to keep playing a mediating role, support both sides in building trust, dispelling misgivings and realizing good neighborliness, and contribute China’s wisdom and strength to promoting security, stability, and development in the Middle East,” she said.
Burns, is he really that pigheaded? One would think that he is experienced enough to understand the USA makes enemies where ever Biden goes. Biden is rude, ruthless, and belligerent, he will cut the throats of friends in a heart beat. See the pipeline sabotage, a war declaration on an ALLY, stabbing Germany and 21 EU members who are also NATO members in the back, destroying the economy of the EU, he stumped on Scholz and and imposes sanctions on EU members if the refuse to sanction Russia. Who needs enemies with a friend like that? Is there no one in government with a brain and simple common sense? One thing is apparent, Mr. Burns is not a man with character and integrity.
That’s right, so it’s likely Burns wasn’t there to whine. No doubt, in classic gangster fashion, it was to tell MBS, “We know where you live.” … in one way of another.
You are becoming one of my favorite writers and commentators.The US did not see this coming because 5ge are totally blind to other Nations hopes and dreams The only things that matter to these Ruling pigs are power ,control and profit.Humanity can take a flying F–k for all the Empire cares.They are too self involved to change a losing.hand.
Agree, Wendell…Renate absolutely rocks, and you’re no slouch yourself 😉
Great crew of folks here, with an exception of one or two, of course!
Not pigheaded. He willingly accepted employment and knows what boss wants.
He did not go all the way there to express frustration. That coukdvhave beb done by e-mail. There was something he wanted to say in person that could not risk interception.
If I were to guess. it had to be a threat. But would had Saudiis risked the move without knowing that somebody had thir back?
And Burns knows what Burns wants for sure.
“”He did not go all the way there to express frustration. That could have been done by e-mail. There was something he wanted to say in person that could not risk interception.””
that reminds me of trump sending his daughter and her husband kushner, who was actually part of trump’s administration, to confer with the saudis and they returned with over a billion dollars
He’s a loyalist. Meaning he’ll kill any puppy they tell him to. CIA director Burns comes across as miserable excuse for a human being, because he knows better.
Blinken and Burns are cut off of the same bolt of coth. Both are pasty faced.
and there it is = ” because he knows better”
Mr. Zelensky will soon discover what being a “friend” to Amerikkka results in, Renate.
I’m guessing every nite his head hits the pillow he longs for the playing piano with his dick days.
Oh no! How terrible that there is now peace! You should have warned me to sell some of my military industrial complex stocks before making peace!
Seriously, why does the CIA director think that the Saudi and Iran foreign ministries report to him? The world is not an American chessboard, as the neocons want to believe.
And becoming less so every day.
Oh no! How terrible that there is now peace! You should have warned me to sell some of my military industrial complex stocks before making peace!
Seriously, why does the CIA director think that the Saudi and Iran foreign ministries report to him? The world is not an American chessboard, as the neocons want to believe.
America’s hegemony keeps collapsing…one rung at a time.
All we are saying, is give peace a chance.
“All we are saying, is give peace a chance”
remember what happened to the last guy who said that
I think it’s so groovy now,
That people are finally getting together!
I think it’s so wonderful and how,
That people are finally getting together!
I remember that song, PL!
Too bad it never actually happened 😉
Saudi Arabia-Iran-Russia-Venezuela, President Biden’s nightmare.
Toss China in there too, Dieter.
Also North Korea…!
I don’t see how Biden and his people sleep at night when you consider how they are fucking up the country and threatening life on our only Planet.
Ah yes, the old autocracy versus democracy question is once again answered. One side wants peace, and the other side gets pissed when peace is a possibility.
SO well said, Wars!
He’s just bewildered because our “put red and black ants in a jar and shake it” policy may not work anymore.
William Gates, who warned the Bush administration about how Russia felt about Ukraine in NATO, is now so obsessed with Ukraine that he is blind to the effects of oil sanctions on the non-Russian oil producers. The actions of the Biden amateur diplomats are entirely to blame for the rapprochement of Saudi Arabia and Iran. First Biden pushes Russia into an alliance with China and next the Saudis into an alliance with Iran. Let’s Go Brandon. And this is the man who will be chosen by the DNC to challenge Trump in 2024? Why not? Putin is sure to keep his hands off such an evolution.
Trump was the Brandon of the past administration, preceded by Barack Brandon Obama and George Brandon Bush before him.
Only Brandons get enough corporate funding to run a successful US Presidential campaign.
I know that you want to destroy the US by dividing the people between right and left camps, and with luck your grand plan will be thwarted.
Woke, it’s the Disunited States that needs to be divided.
Political suicide for the Dems.
If Tulsi Gabbard runs as an independent, she just might pull it off…you never know.
If Gabbard ran as an independent, she might manage to get on the ballot in 5-10 states, and might poll as much as 1% of the vote in those states.
As I said, Thomas, ya just never know. Everyone of my acquaintances are fed up to here with the so-called Major Parties.
I for one am never voting for the lesser of two evils again!
i don’t vote for the lesser of two evils either
Thomas, her followers could stage a coup and insist that she actually won the election 😉
Or at least she could incite a clown costume themed riot.
😁
If Gabbard ran as an independent, she might manage to get on the ballot in 5-10 states, and might poll as much as 1% of the vote in those states.
I wish I could share your optimism. But, no “R”, no “D”, no chance.
From a practical point of view, of course you’re right, Wars. But I cannot stop believing that at some point, the Amerikkkan people will finally get so fed up with both war parties that they’ll seek another solution. ( If not, we’ll be universally isolated and despised.)
Recall that George Wallace was a force to be reckoned with in ‘68. And no, no fan of Wallace here! —but he did extremely well in the South..
You’d think. But for some odd reason when it gets time to vote people leave their spines at home. And what’s really mind blowing is that damn near everyone claims to be an independent.
“Leave their spines at home”…ain’t it the truth Wars!
And there’s that whole “wasted vote” thing. I tell anyone who votes D or R that THEY are the ones wasting their votes!
The problem is most voters vote for the candidate that is ahead in polls even though that candidate is not their top choice…!
Yep, Net, everyone wants to be on the winning side!
The problem is most voters vote for the candidate that is ahead in polls even though that candidate is not their top choice…!
“…damn near everyone claims to be an indpendent…”
Less than half, actually. About 45 per cent, at the top side, self ID as “independent.”
https://news.gallup.com/poll/15370/party-affiliation.aspx
I was talking about person-to-person conversations. I know by the percentages of the votes that 3rd parties get at election time that most people are bullshitting me. My mind blowing comment was meant as sarcasm. And either that 45% that self ID as independent don’t vote or they’re bullshitters too.
Most of them are “leaners,” D or R, which the links shows if you scroll down a bit.
In fact, truly independent voters are pretty rare, and even though self ID as independent is at an all time high, there are some analysists who claim that they hardly exist at all, in terms of voting behavior (once a D, always a D, once an R, always an R; very little ticket splitting; even officially “non partisan” elections are highly partisan, etc). Which definitely supports your “bullshitter” hypothesis! I think a lot folks believe that claiming to be “independent” makes them appear to be better citizens, even though they almost always vote one way or the other.
Morality and decentness went out with Reagan.It has not gotten any better or more prevalent since then no.matter which party is in power.We still.have the same bought and sold Congress now with a right wing almost Fascist SCOTUS. IT ain’t goingbto.get better with 25% of tge populace voting.for.canidates that they did not have any say in.This.Empire will fall.very soon.
It needs to, Wendell.
The DNC does not pick the presidential candidate. The pledged delegate leader always wins the nomination. That candidate, the pledged delegate leader, is also almost always the raw vote leader. The only time, ironically, when that was arguably not true, and when the DNC played too large a role, was in 2008, when Hillary Clinton, the ultimate insider, lost to Obama, the pledged delegate leader, even though she perhaps got more raw votes, and when there was some DNC-enforced hanky panky in Florida and Michigan, and when Obama used his college kid supporters to dominate the caucuses, including in states where Hillary had more support, as shown in more than one case by her defeating Obama in “non binding” primaries, but losing the state’s delegates as they were decided by caucus. But, generally speaking, and that includes the defeat of Saint Bernard of Vermont in 2016 and 2020, the DNC (which is vastly overrated as a power center) has f-all to do with who wins the Dem nomination. The person who wins the primaries gets the nod. Which means he or she is chosen by the voters, the loyal Democratic party voters.
Also, “Brandon” is the incumbent, and incumbents who try for re nomination are almost always unbeatable regardless of what any National Committe wants. Finally, “Brandon” will not be “challenging” Trump, as, again, “Brandon” is the incumbent, which would make Trump the “challenger”
By coming put so forcefully against peace between Saudi Arabia and Iran (and being against peace between Saudi Arabia and Yemen), the US is successfully turning people and nations to be more pro-China and Russia, and more anti-US.
Lately, our big international events are large scale military exercises near Russia, China, and North Korea
You are not the only person who noticed this.I am sure that millions of people
who are aware of the US warlike intentions
Perhaps countries are coming to realize that being a ‘friend’ of Sanction Nation is no longer in their interest.
I assume his comment was first cleared by Tel Aviv.
i would remind the Iranians of the fate of their top general at the hands of uncle sam’s Trump
Meh, the US tactic of leadership killing is not all that effective. How many times has the US killed the “number two” or “number three” guy of Al Qaeda, ISIS, whatever? Only to have the group come back just as strong in the next wave of attacks? Killing a charismatic leader of a furher-principle cult might be effective, if the leader is irreplaceable. But broad-based movements with multiple organizations, like those claiming to fight for irredentist, fundamentalist, Islam, are not going to be significantly affected by the killing off of the leadership, one by one. Similarly, Iran, as a sovereign nation, is not dependent on any one general, civilian leader, Ayatollah, or whoever.
The US is like a bad sports team, It’s good at headlines, but it wins few to no games. Killing the leader of the other team is a good headline. But it doesn’t win the game.
“How many times has the US killed the “number two” or “number three” guy of Al Qaeda, ISIS, whatever”
It would be easier to figure out how many times they haven’t claimed to have killed a number 1, 2, or 3. And each time they get one of those 1, 2, or 3’s, they never ever kill a civilian in the process.
Ha, ha ha. Evil AND incompetent.
These little nothing’s think they are something..
The old, old, US trick of trying to turn nations against each other. There isn’t any money in nations agreeing and building bridges with each other. Thwe only thing which makes money is war and selling arms.
You might ask yourself is Biden administration so dumb Not to realize that it is isolating itself in the world stage rather than the other way around…! And the answer is resolutely Yes…!
Poor Burns, the US blindsides others all the time, now he gets a little taste of that medicine. Biden is rude and insulting with no diplomatic manners, so what does he expect in return?
The Europeans will jump ship too, first chance they get.