As noted in a post I wrote earlier today, France has joined Israel in expressing dismay over the nuclear deal President Obama seems intent on reaching with Iran. Needless to say, Saudi Arabia, Iran’s arch-enemy, shares the disgust.
Israel and France seem to have little leverage with Obama. Indeed, Obama probably feels delighted that Prime Minister Netanyahu is unhappy.
Saudi Arabia might be another matter. In fact, the Saudis may already have thrown a monkey wrench into the deal. The Washington Free Beacon reports that, as condition of any deal, Iran is demanding that Saudi Arabia immediately halt airstrikes in Yemen. According to WFB reporter Adam Kredo, “the issue could complicate the talks, as the United States attempts to balance its regional alliance with Iran in Iraq against competing interests with traditional allies in Saudi Arabia.”
The Saudi bombing in Yemen is intended to prevent forces aligned with Iran from bringing down what’s left of an American-backed government. But who can doubt that, for Obama, getting a deal, almost any deal, with Iran trumps backing U.S. interests in Yemen?
If the Saudis stick to their guns in Yemen, and the Iranians insist that Yemen is a deal-breaker, the deal could fall through. Alternatively, the U.S. could simply make more concessions to the mullahs as compensation for the dastardly action taken by the Saudis to support an American-backed government in a terrorist-infected state.
If it comes to this, who would bet against Obama making additional concessions?
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