The writer is a Class 12 student at Bombay Scottish School, Mumbai, who loves to talk politics.
The situation in the Middle East seems to be plunging into greater political turmoil, and typically one can trace its origin to either Saudi Arabia or Iran. Saudi Arabia has been on the brink with its neighbour Qatar since the time of its independence.
For long, Saudi dominated all Arab countries. The country’s long-term goal was to create an alliance to choke its arch-rival Iran. Qatar, an independent country, wanted to establish itself as an independent state.
Saudi Arabia, a regional power, had the military might to annex Qatar. Realising the precarious situation in the region, the Emir of Qatar decided to make his country an ally of the US. He also signed various agreements with Iran and other countries to not share friendly relations with Saudi. This resulted in an erosion of ties between both countries. The presence of US troops in Qatar, and the US being an ally of both Qatar and Saudi has left the country helpless. The situation worsened in 2011.
Saudi had for a long time ensured that its position in the Gulf remained secure, by funding and helping friendly regimes. Most of these regimes followed brutal dictatorship. This, however, changed in 2011 as many of these countries faced an uprising, with their leadership being ousted. Qatar, in an attempt to gain more influence in the region, poured money into the protests.
On many occasions it even supplied guns and other weapons to rebel armies. This not only angered the present regimes but also Saudi Arabia whose grip on the Arab world began to weaken. On many occasions Qatar has been accused of funding organisations like the Muslim Brotherhood, which have a very divisive ideology. Which is why the seven countries which have decided to cut off all diplomatic ties with Qatar includes Egypt, Libya and Maldives.
The current situation is tense. An open conflict is very unlikely because even though the US is trying to rattle Qatar, it continues to supply this conflict-torn country with arms. Moreover, one of the most important air bases in the Middle East is situated in Qatar. This air base is vital for US operations against ISIS and other Islamic groups. The economic blockade could very well result in further deepening of ties between Iran and Qatar. War will be very costly for both sides.
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