• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
    • Our Mission
      • Political Islam
    • Areas of Expertise
      • Economic Warfare
        • Cyber Security
      • U.S. Policy
      • Anti-Corruption
      • Foreign Election Observing
      • Supporting Free Speech
        • Legislation
      • Impact of ACD’s Work
      • Free Speech Celebration, U.S. Senate
    • Board of Directors & Advisors
    • Our Team
    • Contact Us
    • Subscribe
  • Our Impact
    • Endorsements
    • Additional Praise
  • Media
    • Recent Interviews
    • Events
      • Coming Events
    • Radio
    • Television
    • Rumble / Youtube
  • Publications
    • All Posts Archive
    • ACD Presentations
    • Articles
    • Books
    • Papers
    • Recommended Readings
  • Free Speech
    • Legislation & Support
    • Impact of ACD’s Work
      • FREE SPEECH Act Celebration, U.S. Senate, September 20, 2010
      • Some Congressional Testimonies
  • Economic warfare
    • The Impact of Purposeful Interference on U.S. Cyber Interests
    • Cyber/Space, EMP Insecurity- Current and Future Threats
    • The Existential EMP Threat
    • New Strategies to Secure U.S. Economy from Cyber Attacks
    • Economic Warfare Subversions July 9, 2012
    • CyberSpace Security – Papers And Articles
    • Cyber Security
    • Da’esh “lite” North America Islamist – Sources
    • The Muslim Brotherhood and Da’esh “Lite” in North America
  • Support ACD
    • Donate
    • Subscribe
    • Contact
American Center for Democracy

American Center for Democracy

  • facebook
  • twitter
  • youtube
  • linkedin
  • Free Speech
  • U.S. Policy
    • U.S. Foreign Policy
  • Political Islam
    • Canada
    • Hamas
    • Iran
    • Islam
    • Muslim Brotherhood
    • Palestinian
    • United States
  • Narco-Terrorism
  • Middle East Conflicts
    • Iran
    • Israel
  • Global Conflicts
    • China
    • North Korea
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
  • Soros
You are here: Home / 2016 / Increasing Militarization of the Middle East *

Increasing Militarization of the Middle East *

January 21, 2016 by Norman A. Bailey*

Left: Definition of Middle Eastern countries: Central Intelligence Agency

Recent developments in the Middle East show a disturbing trend to add to all the other disturbing trends that have emerged in the region since the “Arab Spring” began in 2011. Both regional and international actors have begun to take advantage of the power vacuum created by the US and Europe to expand their military presence with potentially dangerous implications especially since most of those actors are revisionist rather than status quo powers.

At the regional level, there is Iran newly-empowered by the nuclear “deal,” which was just implemented despite various provocative actions such as firing missiles near an American aircraft carrier and seizing two US Navy patrol vessels in the Gulf. With the billions that are now to be released from the funds frozen by the US government, Iran will implement its imperialistic ambitions throughout the region threatening the Sunni powers, especially Saudi Arabia. Iranian forces are now heavily engaged directly in Iraq and Syria.

Another of the major non-Arab countries in the region, Turkey, has just signed a deal with its ally Qatar, to station air, naval and ground forces in the Emirate, including 3000 troops. This comes in the face of the fact that the US has a major airbase in Qatar. The purpose of this action is three-fold: to project and protect Turkey’s reputation as a military power in the face of multiple setbacks in recent times; to serve as a warning to Iran not to meddle in the Arab side of the Gulf, and most likely, to serve as a warning to Saudi Arabia not to meddle with Qatar, a rogue member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). (The Saudis forced the abdication of the former emir and his replacement by his son. But the current emir is not much of an improvement from the standpoint of the Saudis.) This new Turkish presence in the Gulf, for the first time since World War I, is coupled with incursions across the Iraqi border and appears to be part of an effort by the Erdogan regime to break its increasing isolation.

Along the same lines, there are continuing reports of a pending deal with Israel to restore relations between the two countries.

The establishment of Russian naval and air bases on the Syrian coast and its direct involvement in the Syrian civil war serves to release that country from its dependency on Turkey and to keep the Bosphorus open for Russian naval maneuvers. Equally interesting is the deal just made by China to establish a naval base in Djibouti, at the mouth of the Red Sea. China already has a naval base in Gwadar, on the coast of Pakistan, which establishes its presence in the Indian Ocean. The projection of military power by China is thus greatly improved in an extremely neuralgic position, with the ability to threaten to close the entrance to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal in case its expansion into the East and South China seas should be challenged. A truly brilliant geostrategic move; one made possible by the great expansion of the Chinese navy in recent years.

Israel has good relations with Russia and excellent relations with China, and its greatly deteriorated relations with Turkey may be on the verge of improving significantly (contrary to the interests of Russia and the Kurds). Only with Iran are relations not only bad but likely to get worse.

On balance, the military realignments in the region are likely to be of benefit to Israel. Even the expansion of Iranian presence may well result in imperial overreach. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard has not been performing brilliantly in Syria, and the expansion of Iranian oil exports as a result on the implementation of the nuclear “deal” will not be the bonanza the country hoped for, since increased exports will simply put further downward pressure on an oil price already greatly depressed by continuing oversupply.

* Norman A. Bailey, Ph.D., is Adjunct Professor of Economic Statecraft at The Institute of World Politics, Washington, DC, and teaches at the Center for National Security Studies and Geostrategy, University of Haifa.

* A version of this commentary was published by Globes [online], on January 21, 2016

Filed Under: 2016, ACD/EWI Blog, Arabian Peninsula, Arms, Assad, China, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Indian Ocean, Iran, Iran Nuclear agreement, Iran sanctions, Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' (IRGC) Qods Force, Israel, Latest News, Middle East, Middle East Conflicts, Moscow, Nuclear Iran, Nuclear missles, Nuclear threat, Obama Administration, Putin, Qatar, Red Sea, Russia, Russian plane, Saudi, Saudi Arabia, Suez Canal, Sunni, Sunni-Shia conflicts., Syria, Terrorism, Turkey, U.S., U.S. Navy, UAE, US Navy

Primary Sidebar

Spotlight

website capture islamist incitement quote by j.woolsey obama signing Rachel's law chemical terrorism transportation terrorism nuclear threats on the rise winning the cyberwar gps concepts and misconceptions libel tourism

Search ACD

Recent Appearances

[5/1/2025] National Talk Radio with Shawn Moore

[3/11/2025] Shaun Thompson Interview

[3/10/2025] Larry Conners Interviews Rachel Ehrenfeld

[2/3/2025] The Truth About George Soros - Grey Matter Podcast

[1/22/2025] Fighting Terrorism Funding - SAM Podcast

[1/8/2025] COUNTER NARRATIVE Interview on PATRIOT.TV

[10/2/2024] The Shaun Thompson Show: Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld

[9/30/2024] Counter Narrative: Soros Power Grab: Media Takeover & Election Manipulation |

[8/28/2024] SOS Blinken warns U.S. allies that Iran may attack Israel in the next 24-48hrs

[8/9/2024] Purham & Associates Show Special Guest: Rachel Ehrenfeld

[7/26/2024] Dr. Ehrenfeld on The Andy Caldwell Show

[6/12/2024] Dr. Ehrenfeld on The Shaun Thompson Show

[5/29/2024] Interview on Bill Martinez Live

[5/24/2024] CAEF presents "Soros is No Dreyfus: The Soros Agenda to Change America & his Anti-Israel Crusade"

[5/16/2024] Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld on Jayne Carol Tonight - Portland, OR

[5/9/2024] How deep do the Soros ties go?

[5/6/2024] Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld: The College Intifada-How Jew Hunting Became a Left Wing Blood Sport On Campus

[4/15/2024] Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld on The Vic Poricini Show

[4/11/2024] The Andy Caldwell Show

[4/10/2024] Always Right Radio with Bob Frantz

[4/3/2024] Kacee Allen & Rachel Ehrenfeld - The Pelle Neroth Taylor Show

[3/12/2024] Rachel Ehrenfeld | Gunther Rewind - Podcast on iHeart Radio

[2/18/2024] תעלומת ג'ורג' סורוס ותרומתו למאבק נגד ישראל - פוקוס על אמריקה - Podcast on Spotify

תעלומת ג'ורג' סורוס ותרומתו למאבק נגד ישראל - פוקוס על אמריקה | Podcast on Spotify

[2/7/2024] Are We in World War III and Don't Know It? - Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson

[1/23/2024] The Chris Smith Show - TNTRADIO.LIVE

[1/22/2024] 'Soros Agenda' Author Warns That Global Elites Could Steal '24 Election - One America News

[1/12/2024] Stacy Washington NOW Rachel on from 24:10 – 31:46.

[12/23/2023] Propagaza – Laura-Lynn Tyler Thompson

View ALL

The Soros Agenda

g. soros

Soros: The Man Who Would Be Kingmaker, Part I

Rachel Ehrenfeld & Shawn Macomber

Soros: The Man Who Would Be Kingmaker, Part II

Soros: The Man Who Would be Kingmaker, Part III

Soros: The Man Who Would be Kingmaker, Part IV

More about Soros...
ORDER THE SOROS AGENDA →
Buy The Soros Agenda

Tags

antisemitism Caliphate Canada capital punishment China Christians Daniel Haqiqatjou Dawah Disinformation genocide Hamas Iran ISIS Islam Islamic Party of Ontario Islamic Relief Canada Islamic Relief Worldwide Islamization Islamophobia Israel J. Millard Burr Jews jihad Justin Trudeau LGBT liberalism Muslim Brotherhood Muslims NCCM Norman Bailey Palestine Political Islam Quran Russia Salaheddin Islamic Centre Saudi Arabia Sharia Sol W. Sanders SOROS Syria Terrorism Toronto US USA women's rights

Footer

About ACD

ACD is a New York-based 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, which monitors and exposes the enemies of freedom and their modus operandi, and explores pragmatic ways to counteract their methods.

Endorsements

"The ACD/EWI ability to predict future threats is second to none"

- R. James Woolsey, former Director of Central Intelligence

- - - More Endorsements - - -

Follow ACD!

  • facebook
  • twitter
  • youtube
  • linkedin

Copyright © 2025 | The American Center for Democracy is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your contribution is tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.