This is Blinken’s second trip to the Arab country since he became head of US diplomacy, and comes in the middle of an attempt by the kingdom to change the political situation of the region, with a closer approach to neighbors such as Syria and Iran, enemies of Washington and victims of its illegal sanctions.
Relations between the United States and its until recently staunch ally are strained due to Riyadh’s “contempt” stance on the supply of crude oil to global markets.
Its willingness to partner with Russia in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and resume relations with Iran, amid Western attempts to isolate the Persian nation, all with the intervention of China, another adversary of the North.
The visit of the high-ranking US official takes place just a few hours after the stay in Saudi Arabia of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who described his visit as successful.
On the other hand, both countries are talking to try to reach a lasting ceasefire in Sudan, and on the issue of the war in Yemen, the scene of clashes since 2014 between the supporters of former president Abdo Rabu Mansur Hadi and the Houthi rebels of the Ansar Allah movement, a conflict that Saudi Arabia joined in 2015 under the pretext of supporting the former president.
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