Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE & Bahrain in talks to form defence alliance -

Jerusalem: Against the background of the increasing Iranian threat, Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain are coming together. To counter the Iranian threat, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the Arab allies have started talks on a united military front. A leading Israeli news channel has reported this.

US President Joe Biden is preparing to sign a fresh nuclear deal with Iran. But the Biden administration has still not clarified whether the regional countries will participate in the talks regarding the nuclear deal with Iran. The United States has avoided giving a reaction despite appeals made by Israel, Saudi Arabia and GCC, the association of Gulf countries. The Israeli news channel claimed that against this background, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain have decided to pool resources to counter the Iranian threat.

Six months ago, Israel established diplomatic ties with the UAE and Bahrain with the historic Abraham agreement. But diplomatic relations have not been officially established between Israel and Saudi Arabia. The western media have published reports of secret meetings between the leaders and officials from both countries in the past.

Last year, a US newspaper had claimed that the then US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brokered a secret meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia did not confirm these claims made by the western media. But the Israeli leaders have repeatedly announced that their country is keen on developing relations with Saudi Arabia.

A few hours ago, Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz appealed to the Arab countries to unite to counter the Iranian threat. In this scenario, the report regarding the meeting between Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain is viewed with all seriousness.

Four days ago, another Israeli news channel had said that telephonic discussions were held between Israeli and Saudi Arabian officials. There are indications that Israel and the Arab countries, upset with the Biden administration’s stand regarding Iran, are forming their independent front.