I arrived at the end of October in Washington to spend some weeks of my one-year sabbatical at George Washington University. The city lives up to its name, a busy metro where you inhale and exhale politics, lobbying, and wheeling-dealing. But Washington continues to be the city that most Americans visit not to deal with the federal government bureaucracy and red tape, but as tourists.

Washington seems to be preoccupied with its never ending domestic agenda, the midterm elections, Ebola phobia and the ongoing war against Daesh (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant). It was ironic that the White House, the Federal government and even some state governments are preoccupied with the controversial policy of quarantining ordinary people, doctors, nurses and even troops coming back from West African countries. It is ironic that fear of Ebola has a grip on Americans that trumps the coverage of the war against Daesh.

Washington’s approach towards the Gulf region, and the Middle East in general, seems to be confused, adrift and incoherent. There is a sinking feeling in the Gulf that the US has downgraded the region’s significance, relies less on Gulf energy, is engaged in an active rapprochement with Iran over its nuclear programme, and is fighting Daesh in Iraq and Syria because the US did not heed the warning and the advice from its GCC allies over its inaction.

On top of that, and to the disappointment of the GCC states, the US has been on record saying reaching a nuclear deal with Iran is its top priority. President Barack Obama’s deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes recently told a meeting of progressive allies: “Bottom line is, this is the best opportunity we’ve had to resolve the Iranian issue diplomatically, certainly since President Obama came to office, and probably since the beginning of the Iraq war … This is the biggest thing President Obama will do in his second term on foreign policy. This is healthcare for us, just put it in context.”

So, the US is not shy to admit that a nuclear deal with Iran tops its foreign policy agenda, and this could be the only silver lining for Obama’s legacy! But that nevertheless, gives Iran leverage, where the US overlooks the GCC’s concerns over Tehran’s meddling in Gulf and other Arab countries, fomenting sectarian strife and pushing sectarian tension to a new high. The latest Iranian meddling in Arab affairs has been in Yemen, where Iran’s allies and beneficiaries took control of the country, giving Tehran more leverage. Iranian officials, from the religious establishment to Revolutionary Guards, to a Tehran MP brag and boast unashamedly that a “fourth Arab capital has fallen to Iranian domination”.

The GCC-US relationship has rebounded after sinking to its lowest in 2013 over divergence on strategic issues, mainly over America’s opening up towards Iran, its hands-off policy over Iraq, inaction over Syria, its confused approach towards the Arab Spring, and its accommodation of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. Add to that its touted strategy of rebalancing and pivoting towards Asia, and the preoccupation with its domestic agenda. All of that, no doubt, rattled the GCC states that correctly questioned the reliability of the US as a protector.

Now, as the GCC states see it, the Obama administration has been forced to come back kicking and screaming to launch a war against Daesh. The GCC states don’t want to tell the US “We told you so”. If the US acted in August 2013 when the Syrian regime of Bashar Al Assad crossed Obama’s ‘red line’ and gassed its own people, the US and 40 other nations of the coalition of the willing would not be doing what they are doing today, with a flawed and incoherent strategy that could back fire.

Although, the GCC states have proven time and again their reliability as allies and even strategic partners — the latest being spearheading the anti-Daesh bombing campaign — there is a feeling that the US under-appreciates the GCC’s role.

In the US capital, I am exposed to debate, discussions, conferences, media coverage in what is labelled as a one of kind city in the world. Inside the ‘Beltway’ decisions are made, lobbyists peddle the interests of their clients and Washington lives up to its name as the world capital.

A visitor to Washington can’t help but notice how the US is completely consumed by its domestic agenda — the economy, and the midterm elections on Tuesday.

Democrats fear they might lose their majority in the US Senate, where they lead by 10 seats. The midterm election could be a watershed moment with ramifications not only for the Obama administration and the president’s legacy, but also for the Democratic Party and the Democratic presidential candidate in 2016. Currently, Hillary Clinton, holds a comfortable lead.

The US seems to be rattled, with Obama’s approval ratings according to recent polls as low as 44 per cent, with the Republicans accusing him of being weak and not showing the leadership expected of the only superpower. It seems Obama, who is now officially a lame duck president, will play it safe and focus on a nuclear deal with Iran to salvage his presidency.

 

Professor Abdullah Al Shayji is the former chairman of the Political Science Department, Kuwait University. He is currently a Visiting Scholar at the Middle East Centre in George Washington University. You can follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/@docshayji