WE here in the West have NATO as an armed wing of foreign policy….basically it was a group started to help Europe deal with Soviet expansion during the Cold War….
We all know simplistically the problems in the Middle East…..could their problems be handled by a version of NATO especially designed for the countries in the Middle East?
But I thought that they had an organization along these lines….it is called The Arab League….
According to its charter, the founding members of the Arab League (Egypt, Syria, Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Yemen) agreed to seek “close cooperation” on matters of economics, communication, culture, nationality, social welfare, and health. They renounced violence for the settlement of conflicts between members and empowered League offices to mediate in such disputes, as well as in those with non-members. Signatories agreed to collaborate in military affairs; this accord was strengthened with a 1950 pact committing members to treat acts of aggression on any member state as an act against all.
There is a proposal making its way around the region and of course it was the Saudis that pitched the idea originally…..
The year was 2015……..
A new Saudi-led Islamic alliance to fight terrorism will share information and train, equip and provide forces if necessary for the fight against Islamic State militants, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia announced earlier on Tuesday the formation of a 34-nation Islamic military coalition to combat terrorism, a move welcomed by the United States which has been urging a greater regional involvement in the campaign against the militants who control swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria.
Source: Saudi Arabia announces 34-state Islamic military alliance against terrorism | Reuters
The alliance’s full roster is Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Jordan, Tunisia, Yemen, the Palestinians, Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Benin, Chad, Togo, Djibouti, Senegal, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Gabon, Guinea, Comoros, Ivory Coast, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Nigeria.
I find it interesting that the nation that introduced Muslims to the idea of “jihad” originated in Saudi Arabia….the country that has cut off as many heads as ISIS, a country that has a religious police, a country that does not allow women to drive, and well you get the idea.
I bring all this up again because of what the Saudis have just done…..An international public relations firm is facing accusations of complicity in “whitewashing” alleged Saudi Arabian war crimes in Yemen after signing a deal to represent a Riyadh-dominated military alliance dubbed the “Muslim Nato”.
Source: Saudis hire world’s biggest PR firm to push ‘Muslim Nato’ | Middle East Eye
Is this organization about fighting terrorism or is it more about popularity of the originator?
Personally, I like the idea of a Middle East “NATO”….but not when one of the world’s biggest violators of human rights is the leader.
Why not incorporate this idea into the idea of The Arab League?
This does not past the sniff test for me.
Any thoughts?
