Gulf allies grow frustrated with Trump's Iran policy, seek new security arrangements

US-allied Gulf states are growing increasingly frustrated with President Donald Trump's handling of Iran, with some reportedly questioning the value of hosting U.S. military bases and exploring alternative security arrangements. The Washington Post reported, citing Arab and Western officials, that governments in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain share this frustration, with one official stating that anger towards the U.S. has reached its highest point since the war with Iran began in February.

“

Trump started this war, and we are paying the price.

"Trump started this war," the official told the newspaper, "and we are paying the price." While the U.S. remains a close security partner and arms supplier, the region's governments are beginning to doubt the effectiveness of continuing to host American military installations.

This growing discontent is underscored by the recent formation of a NATO-like alliance between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, known as the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement. This pact, signed in early August after months of Iranian attacks on Gulf countries, stipulates that an attack on one member will be considered an attack on all. A European official described the agreement as a "signal to the US" that some regional states are seeking to diversify their security and defense partnerships because "the US is not enough."

“

In their mind, the US is not enough.

However, one Western diplomat familiar with the region offered a different perspective, suggesting that U.S. military forces were not enthusiastically welcomed even before the war. "It was more something that was a necessary evil," the diplomat told the Washington Post. "Now, the necessity of it is being put in question."

“

It was more something that was a necessary evil. Now, the necessity of it is being put in question.