JNS
Taliban triumph in Afghanistan has Arab states and Israel hedging dependence on US
by Ariel Ben Solomon
August 19, 2021

The Taliban’s quick takeover of Afghanistan has Middle Eastern countries deeply concerned about their dependence on the U.S. security umbrella. Elliott Abrams, who served as Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela during the Donald Trump administration, told JNS that Arab states could be expected to increase security cooperation and consultation with Israel — “though we will not see most of it.” Asked how this could influence Iran’s thinking, Abrams replied, “I believe that Iran will have concluded the Biden team is not first-rate and wants to avoid confrontations, so Iran is more likely to test them now than it was six months ago.” READ MORE