On the 10th of this month, under the mediation of China, Saudi Arabia and Iran, two major powers in the Middle East, agreed to end the seven-year gap and restore diplomatic relations. A "tide of reconciliation" in the Middle East has thus begun.
Turkey and Egypt agreed to restore diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level as soon as possible, and Syria and Saudi Arabia normalized relations after 12 years of severance.
Previous hostile parties in the Middle East shook hands and made peace, and some analysts believe that the situation in the Middle East has ushered in a long-lost "diplomatic spring".
According to the US Department of Defense, on the evening of March 23, local time, the US military carried out air strikes on eastern Syria.
U.S. Defense Secretary Austin said the airstrike, authorized by President Joe Biden, was in response to an earlier attack by U.S. forces at a military base near Syria's Hasakah province, which killed one U.S. contractor and injured five others.
US President Joe Biden: To be clear, the focus of the United States is not to have a conflict with Iran, but we are always ready to protect our people as soon as possible.
Although the United States has repeatedly stressed that the air strike is a "precision strike" against Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities in Syria. But Iranian news television quoted local sources as saying that the target of the US attack was not Iranian-related military facilities, but an agricultural development center and grain center near a military airport.
According to the Agence France-Presse news agency, citing the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the US military's retaliation has resulted in at least eight deaths.
The day before the US air strike on Syria, on March 22, the Syrian Ministry of Defense issued a statement saying that US ally Israel attacked Aleppo International Airport in Syria in the early morning of the same day.
This is the second time in weeks that the airport has been subjected to Israeli air strikes, the last of which occurred on 7 March. According to the Syrian Defense Ministry, some facilities at Aleppo International Airport were damaged and operations were suspended.
At a time when the United States and its allies continue to create tensions, under the influence of China's mediation, a "wave of reconciliation" brings hope for peace in the Middle East.
On March 23, Reuters reported that Saudi Arabia and Syria agreed to reopen their embassies through consultations.
It is reported that Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal may visit the Syrian capital Damascus after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, in late April, and negotiators will strive to reach an agreement before then.
This is the first dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Syria since 2012, and it is also regarded as another "historic moment" after the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
In 2011, after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, some Arab countries were at odds with the Syrian government.
At that time, Saudi Arabia supported the Syrian opposition against the Syrian government led by Bashar al-Assad. In 2012, the two countries officially severed diplomatic relations, and there has been no formal official contact between the two countries for nearly 12 years.
On February 6 this year, two consecutive earthquakes struck the border area of Turkey and Syria, and statistics show that the earthquake has caused more than 6,000 deaths in Syria.
A week after the quake, a Saudi plane carrying relief supplies landed at Aleppo International Airport in Syria. This is the first time in nearly 12 years since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war that a Saudi aircraft has landed in a Syrian government-controlled area.
Head of Saudi aid operations: We transported rescue trucks through the Turkish-Syrian border, and also built an air bridge for aircraft assistance.
The Syrian boy, Nabil, is 10 years old and lost his father in the earthquake. He was rescued from the rubble by a Saudi rescue team, and in an interview, he said he wanted to see the famous star Cristiano Ronaldo play in Syria.
The video was posted online and quickly went viral. After seeing this, the Riyadh Victory team invited Nabil and his mother to the game and arranged for Ronaldo and Nabil to meet after the match.
The warmth of the people has always existed, and it has gradually melted the relationship between the two countries that has been frozen for nearly 12 years.
In May, Saudi Arabia will host the next Arab League summit.
If a formal agreement can be reached between Saudi Arabia and Syria, a vote on the admission of Syria to the Arab world is expected to be on the agenda of the summit.
In fact, just days before Saudi Arabia took the step of "reconciliation" with Syria, another Middle Eastern country took the lead in extending its hand to Syria.
On March 19, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his wife paid a state visit to the United Arab Emirates and received the highest level of courtesy from the Afghan side. UAE President Mohammed Mohammed personally picked up the airport.
UAE President Mohammed: It's time for Syria to return to the Arab family.
Like Saudi Arabia, the UAE supported Syrian rebels during the Syrian civil war.
At the end of December 2018, the UAE reopened its embassy in Syria.
In October 2021, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Abdullah led a delegation to Syria and met with President Bashar al-Assad, signaling the normalization of relations.
In the recent Turkish-Syrian earthquake relief, the United Arab Emirates was one of the first countries to provide a large amount of relief materials to Syria and sent search and rescue teams.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad: Now that [the earthquake] has passed a month, when Syrians talk about it, absolutely the first thing to mention is the loving support of the UAE, which is most valuable.
UAE President Mohammed: We are honored by your visit today, and we hope that this visit will serve as a basis for helping to build strong bridges to build bilateral relations that benefit Syria's interests.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning: Syria's return to the Arab family is conducive to the unity and rejuvenation of Arab countries. I would also like to stress once again that China firmly supports Arab countries in strengthening solidarity and cooperation, enhancing strategic autonomy and jointly promoting regional peace, stability and development.
It is worth noting that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both important allies of the United States in the Middle East, and seeing the two countries extending an olive branch to Syria, the attitude of the United States is that it is deeply "disappointed and uneasy".
Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the U.S. State Department: Our opposition to normalization of relations has not changed, and we will not normalize relations with the Assad regime. Our position on this has always been clear, and we have made that very clear with our allies.
Also in this wave of Middle Eastern "reconciliation" are Turkey and Egypt.
On March 18, Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu visited Cairo, the capital of Egypt, and held talks with Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukeri.
Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu: We will dispel misunderstandings arising from the lack of dialogue and hope that we can further develop relations between the two countries, as well as cooperation on regional issues.
This is the first time in more than a decade that Turkey has sent a ministerial-level official to Egypt.
The two sides agreed to restore diplomatic relations between the two countries at the ambassadorial level as soon as possible and to promote talks between the two heads of state in the second half of this year.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukairi: The strong brotherhood that binds the two peoples together is a relationship that runs through history, and we are very proud of that.
The last time a Turkish minister visited Egypt was in 2012, when Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu traveled to Cairo to attend a conference hosted by the Arab League on the Syrian crisis.
After the ouster of former Egyptian President Morsi in 2013, Egypt-Turkey relations gradually deteriorated, and the two countries downgraded their diplomatic relations, and then Egypt-Turkey diplomatic relations existed in name only for nearly 10 years.
Egypt and Turkey are both major powers in the Middle East and the Islamic world, and nearly 10 years of confrontation and confrontation have consumed the national strength of the two countries, but have failed to fundamentally break the situation on related issues.
In 2021, the two countries began to launch high-level diplomatic consultations, and recently, under the influence of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi and Iraq, Egypt-Turkey relations have also warmed up significantly.
Qatar's Al Jazeera analysis believes that the reason why relations between Middle East countries have entered a new period of adjustment and détente, in addition to the increased willingness of countries to seek peace and development, can also be attributed to the demonstration effect produced by China in promoting Saudi Arabia and Iran to shake hands and make peace.
On March 23, according to the website of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iranian Foreign Minister Abdollahian and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal had a telephone conversation, and the two sides agreed to meet as soon as possible.
The report quoted Abdollahian as saying that Iran is ready to expand and strengthen relations with Saudi Arabia. Faisal said that the Beijing dialogue has achieved positive results, and it is necessary for the foreign ministers of the two countries to meet as soon as possible.
As representative countries of the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam, Saudi Arabia and Iran have always been at odds on many regional issues, and the two countries directly severed diplomatic relations in 2016. Affected by this, some other Gulf Arab countries have also severed diplomatic relations with Iran or lowered the level of diplomatic relations.
From March 6 to 10 this year, with the mediation and support of the Chinese government, representatives of Saudi Arabia and Iran held a dialogue in Beijing.
On March 10, the two countries reached the Beijing Agreement, and China and Saudi Arabia signed and issued a joint statement, announcing that the two sides agreed to restore diplomatic relations, emphasizing that the three sides will work together to uphold the basic norms of international relations and promote international and regional peace and security.
Ali Shamkhani, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council: We hope that this new chapter will end the stalemate in relations between the two countries over the past seven years, bring more stability and security to the region, and bring greater development and prosperity to the people.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bluntly said that China is the best "intermediary" to promote the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal: Because China has good relations with our two countries, neither the United States nor Europe can be an icebreaker in our relationship. From this perspective, China is the logical partner to make this happen.
France 24 host: How important is this agreement? Will it change the rules of the previous game?
Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal: Very likely.
On March 15, five days after the Beijing agreement, Saudi Finance Minister Jadan said that Saudi Arabia may soon invest in Iran with the goal of regional stability and prosperity and people's livelihood.
Saudi Arabian Finance Minister Jadan: Iran is our neighbor, it has been like this for hundreds of years and will continue to be so, so under the premise that both sides abide by the Beijing agreement, I don't see anything to stop the two countries from carrying out normal cooperation in investment and other fields.
At present, the two countries face very different economic situations. As part of Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia has made significant international investments and launched megaprojects worth trillions of dollars to diversify its economy. Iran, on the other hand, is in a difficult economic situation due to Western sanctions. Investment from Saudi Arabia will be a big help to Iran's battered economy.
Moreover, as Iran and Saudi Arabia support opposing sides in the Yemen conflict, reconciliation between the two countries will also bring hope for peace in war-torn Yemen.
Middle East analyst Helil: At the very least, action will be taken to permanently cease hostilities in Yemen and reach a peace agreement in Yemen to keep the peace on a more permanent basis.
The U.S. Foreign Affairs website believes that the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran could reshape the region and create a new order.
Washington has long been unaware that Saudi Arabia does not see itself as a security vassal of the United States, but as a regional power that can play an independent role in world politics, according to the U.S. Foreign Affairs website. As one Saudi official put it, Riyadh believes that the old model of "trading cheap oil for U.S. protection" no longer exists.
On March 23, the second International Forum on "Democracy: A Common Value for All Humanity" was held in Beijing, according to Garloway, leader of the British Workers' Party and former MP.
Galloway, leader of the British Workers' Party: In the past few weeks, China has succeeded in restoring diplomatic relations between two Sunni and Shiite countries, Saudi Arabia and Iran, and in just a few weeks China has achieved more important things than Western powers have achieved in decades.
The US "Business Insider" website quoted a former US diplomat as saying that the agreement between the two countries to resume diplomatic relations is equivalent to "giving Biden the middle finger."
In 2018, Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and journalist and prominent Saudi opposition, was killed after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.
In 2019, Biden, who participated in the presidential campaign, threatened that he would retaliate against Saudi Arabia for Khashoggi's murder after taking office, turning Saudi Arabia into a "pariah state" in the international community.
Biden, then US presidential candidate: I want to make it clear that we will not sell more weapons to Saudi Arabia, we will make them pay and make them de facto pariahs.
In July 2022, Biden embarked on a "trip to the Middle East." In order to avoid embarrassment, the US side released a wind before departure, saying that Biden and Saudi officials "will not shake hands."
On the same day, Biden took the initiative to extend his fist to Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman, who came to greet him, and the two gently bumped their fists to show goodwill.
Biden told reporters after his visit that he blamed the Saudi crown prince in person in bilateral talks on the Khashoggi case.
In the view of the Wall Street Journal, Biden's move angered Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman and prompted Saudi Arabia to make a determination to develop an oil policy independent of the United States.
On October 5 last year, the 33rd OPEC+ ministerial meeting was held in Vienna, Austria. The decision to cut total oil production by 2 million barrels per day from November caught the United States by surprise.
On November 17, in an effort to ease relations with Saudi Arabia, the Biden administration announced that Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman, the current head of government and prime minister of Saudi Arabia, enjoyed sovereign immunity in the lawsuit over Khashoggi's murder.
Krieger, a professor at King's College London, said: "In the great power competition with China and Russia, the United States recognizes that Saudi Arabia has other options and believes that it must stop Saudi Arabia from turning further to the East at all costs." ”
On March 10, the day Saudi Arabia and Iran signed the agreement in Beijing, US President Joe Biden gave an intriguing response to the question.
Reporter: What do you think of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran?
US President Joe Biden: The better relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors, the better for all.
In this regard, the White House did not directly explain this, only saying that the easing of tensions in the Middle East is a priority for the Biden administration. Kirby, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, sought to downplay China's role in the Shah-Iraq reconciliation while again referring to a deal brokered by the United States.
White House National Security Council spokesperson Kirby: We support the Abraham Accords, and we hope that this integration process will continue.
The Abraham Accords refers to the agreement on the normalization of peace and relations between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed on September 15, 2020, brokered by the United States.
Passy, Executive Vice Chairman of the Quincy Institute: The attention of the United States is unusually focused on the Abraham Accords, which did improve relations between some GCC countries and Israel, but did not help to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which is the real problem that needs to be solved.
A closer look at the map of the Middle East shows that Saudi Arabia plays a very important role in the encirclement envisioned by Israel. Now that Saudi Arabia has chosen to reconcile with Iran, the outside world is beginning to question how likely it is that the vision of the United States and Israel will become a reality.
Israel's Jerusalem Post frankly said that under China's mediation, the reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran marks the formation of a new Middle East.
While the "tide of reconciliation" in the Middle East continues, President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Russia on March 20-22 at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The visit comes at a time when the Ukraine crisis is escalating, spillover effects continue to appear, and most countries are worried, calling for a relaxation of tensions, and peaceful and rational voices advocating a ceasefire and a halt to the war are accumulating. The Russian side spoke highly of China's objective, fair and balanced position, said that the Russian side has carefully studied China's position paper, is open to peace talks, and welcomes China to play a constructive role in this regard.
Passy, Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute: More and more countries are no longer counting on Washington to help resolve disputes, and we may see a trend where these countries are increasingly turning their attention to Beijing.
It can be said that the Beijing dialogue has opened a new page in the relations between Saudi and Iran, and China's good offices have also brought new hope for the realization of peace and stability in the Middle East.
Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger sharply pointed out that China's facilitation of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi and Iraq is a major change in the strategic pattern of the Middle East, a new game with new rules has emerged, and China has taken an important step towards becoming a "participant in the creation of international order".
Source: CCTV News Client