Via Maria Fantappie and Bader Al-Saif in foreignaffairs.com: To Washington, the Saudi rapprochement with Iran may seem like bad news. U.S. officials, after all, have spent years pushing for Israel and Saudi Arabia to normalize relations. But the United States should welcome Riyadh’s pivot. If Saudi Arabia can forge working ties with both Iran and Israel, the country can play a new and useful role in moderating Middle Eastern tensions. It can act as a broker between competing parties, perhaps putting an end to the current Iranian-Israeli tit for tat. The events of the past year have upended long-standing redlines, deterrence parameters, and traditional rules of engagement among foes, and Riyadh is in a uniquely strong position to midwife a better regional order.
