Most of the Arab nations are leery of Tehran’s regional ambitions (Shi’ite-majority Iraq is an exception, as is Syria’s Assad regime, which as a result of the civil war has been suspended from the Arab League since 2011) and some have expressed misgivings about the prospect of a less-than-watertight nuclear deal.
“I believe everybody wants a deal, but everybody wants a good deal,” al-Jubeir said on the CBS show.
“We have been assured by the United States, by Secretary [of State John] Kerry when he met with the foreign ministers of the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council], that the deal that they intend to negotiate would prevent Iran from acquiring an atomic bomb,” he said.
“It would close all paths leading to an atomic bomb. It will limit substantially Iran’s ability to do research and enrich. And it will impose intrusive and continuous inspections on Iran in the future. Now, we hope this is – this will be the case. But we really will not know until we see the details. And I don’t believe the details have been worked out yet.”
In calling for a joint military force the Arab League is citing its Treaty of Joint Defense and Economic Cooperation, drawn up in 1950 with seven original signatories – Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen. An attack on one would be regarded as an attack on all.
The original focus was on Israel, which two years earlier had defeated an attempt by forces from six of those countries to destroy the newly-declared Jewish state.
Over the ensuing decades conflicting interests and distrust prevented the initiative from taking off, and most Arab attempts at collective defense have been viewed as a failure.
But the instability resulting from the so-called Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt, Libya, Syria, and Yemen; the rise of ISIS; and concerns about Iran’s behavior and strategic aims have breathed new life into the notion of a joint military response to growing regional challenges.
(CNSNews)