In a previous article, we asked whether a new regional order awaited us in the Middle East after paths of normalization had begun to be paved in the region. These paths are being taken at divergent speeds, with the factors governing each normalization process and their mediation mechanisms determining the pace at which it moves forward.
Oman has been playing a pivotal role in this regard. Indeed, some major powers (like Egypt and Iran, for example) have yet to overcome old tensions, and Oman has been particularly invested in rebuilding bridges of dialogue and trust between these parties. It has had success in making progress on this front, as will soon be apparent.
The Arab League Summit in Jeddah fortified these shifts. Syria was reinstated in the Arab League, and the statement issued at the summit expressed support for future cooperation in an array of fields and stressed the need to develop joint strategies for facing shared challenges. In his speech before the summit, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman emphasized the importance of preventing our region from turning into fields of conflict, sending a clear message regarding the need for change.
The challenges are many. From politics to the economy, security, culture, society, and climate issues, a new approach is needed to overcome hurdles. We need approaches grounded in real, and therefore effective, engagement. The effort thus needs to be cooperative if we are to resolve the problems facing everyone in the region. Fortifying the role of states and their sovereignty is a necessary condition for successfully addressing these various challenges. The state remains the gateway to stability and the enhancement of cooperation that serves the interests of all at the regional level.
The Jeddah Summit constitutes a turning point on the path toward building a new regional order that replaces regional chaos, which has cost the region and its people dearly. The chaotic order fueled and reinforced all sorts of conflicts and interventions in the name of doctrines and ideology that go beyond the nation-state and justified interference in the internal affairs of other countries, which intensified conflicts and worsened instability.
The new order must be founded on rules and principles that respect state sovereignty and prevent foreign meddling. It must enshrine rules and norms for managing disputes, which are inherent to state relations, and it must also develop frameworks for containing these disputes and settling them if possible, as they must not be allowed to trigger clashes. Instead of clashing, the regional order must encourage everyone to build on what they share and to strengthen the regional system in a way that benefits all.
We remind our readers of the Conference for Cooperation and Partnership held in Baghdad on August 28, 2021, which was a promising first step on the path toward reformulating ties among states in the region. Nonetheless, the second held in Oman in December 2022 did not meet expectations. However, this was before the region took the course of normalization, which is why the Baghdad Conference failed to achieve aspirations.
Circumstances have changed with the progress in normalizing relations in the region. We must make way for a new regional order amid the shifts engendered by the normalization efforts so that we can enhance and build on them and prevent regional challenges from undermining them.
This task demands that the Arabs take the initiative and hold talks with Türkiye and Iran (triangle dialogue) after positive developments reshaped the Arab world’s ties to these two regional powers. Through dialogue, a “basket” of rules and principles could be agreed upon by the parties concerned.
This would allow them to regulate diplomatic ties in the future, manage and contain disputes when they emerge, and develop policies to address the challenges facing the Middle East region effectively and successfully. Many believe that this will not be easy. Nonetheless, it is a necessary requisite for turning a new page in the region that serves all of our interests.
All of this essentially demands crystallizing an Arab practical understanding of how the Arab world plays a proactive role in resolving the issues and challenges inside the “Arab House.” After that, it can begin making arrangements for enhanced cooperation with these two regional powers. Will the concerned parties rise to this challenge? The near future undoubtedly holds the answer.
