According to a scoop (I can’t use the term anymore without mental images of Joey SoftServe with face buried in a waffle cone) by the Wall Street Journal, the Biden White House has tried to arrange calls with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the U.A.E.’s Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan to convince them to pump more oil. U.S. gas prices are skyrocketing, we’re nearing hyperinflation, and only the dimmest bulbs in the media are going to believe that Russia invading Ukraine has diddly squat to do with either.
— streiff (@streiffredstate) March 9, 2022
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the U.A.E.’s Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan both declined U.S. requests to speak to Mr. Biden in recent weeks, the officials said, as Saudi and Emirati officials have become more vocal in recent weeks in their criticism of American policy in the Gulf.
“There was some expectation of a phone call, but it didn’t happen,” said a U.S. official of the planned discussion between the Saudi Prince Mohammed and Mr. Biden. “It was part of turning on the spigot [of Saudi oil].”
Mr. Biden did speak with Prince Mohammed’s 86-year-old father, King Salman, on Feb. 9, when the two men reiterated their countries’ longstanding partnership. The U.A.E.’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the call between Mr. Biden and Sheikh Mohammed would be rescheduled.
The Saudis have signaled that their relationship with Washington has deteriorated under the Biden administration, and they want more support for their intervention in Yemen’s civil war, help with their own civilian nuclear program as Iran’s moves ahead, and legal immunity for Prince Mohammed in the U.S., Saudi officials said. Multiple lawsuits are pending against the crown prince in the U.S. for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist.
Saudis have expressed concern about U.S. responses to missile strikes in Yemen by Iran-backed Houthi militants. Officials said that the Emiratis and Saudi Arabia are both concerned about this. Both governments are also concerned about the revival of the Iran nuclear deal, which doesn’t address other security concerns of theirs and has entered the final stages of negotiations in recent weeks.
As oil prices rise to $130 per barrel, the White House is working hard to restore relations with key Middle Eastern nations it relies on. Saudi Arabia and U.A.E. are the only two major oil producers that can pump millions of more barrels of more oil—a capacity that, if used, could help calm the crude market at a time when American gasoline prices are at high levels.
Brett McGurk, the National Security Council’s Middle East coordinator, and Amos Hochstein, the State Department’s energy envoy, both traveled to Riyadh late last month to try to mend fences with Saudi officials. In Abu Dhabi, Mr. McGurk met Sheikh Mohammed to discuss Emirati concerns about the U.S.’s response to Houthi attacks.
McGurk was a W.S.J. and wanted to know what type of brain trust is running diplomacy. He was also failing to reach an agreement with Iraq on the Status of Forces. He also tried to thwart the U.S. Ambassador in Baghdad’s female talent. I think it is a great accomplishment for the State Department that his liaisons were made with women. He ended up appearing in a porn film that was accidentally recorded at the embassy. You can find the details in Vote No On The McGurk Nomination.
I don’t think there has been a time in my life where a President of the United States could make a call and the recipient just refused to take it. Something like this might have happened with Jimmy Carter during the Arab Oil Embargo, but I don’t think so.
There isn’t much of a surprise here. Joey SoftServe is driven by circumstances at all stages of his career, instead of managing them. My fear is that the first act was being forced out of Afghanistan. It left behind millions of Americans and equipment worth billions. Biden was absent from action throughout the Ukraine crisis. When things get tough, Biden will grab an ice cream cone before heading to Delaware. If it weren’t for the Germans and French–I can’t believe I’m writing this–there would be no Western leadership dealing with Ukraine.
The incompetence shown by these people is becoming a pop hit from the 1970s.
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