Sanam Vakil

U.S. President Barack Obama this past week called on America’s Arab allies to begin a “practical conversation” with Iran to reduce sectarian divisions and address mutual threats from terrorism and regional instability. In effect, Obama seeks to empower the region to fight its own battles. With limited domestic interest to shoulder such responsibility, especially in the aftermath of the long-standing Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns, Washington wants the Middle East to grow up and take responsibility for their own regional conflicts. The creation of a Middle Eastern League of Nations– a regional security organization composed of all Middle Eastern countries including the Gulf states, Egypt, Iraq, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iran and Turkey, would be a first step to promoting regional cooperation. This organization should collectively assume responsibility for the security and stability of the Middle East.

To date, two regional security organizations exist in the Middle East, neither of which is fully inclusive and, as such, ineffective. The Arab League is the oldest and most expansive in membership and participation, having been formed in 1945 with six initial member states including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. Since then, states from the Horn of Africa, North Africa and the Gulf have joined, expanding the membership to 22 Arab nations. 

The Arab League is designed to bring together the interests and objectives solely of Arab states. Historical interests have fluidly converged around the issue of Israel as the Arab League collectively responded to the creation of Israel in 1948 in the first Arab-Israeli war. Through the years the Arab League has also endorsed the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative that laid out a road map for Palestinian-Israeli peace. Similar examples of unity have been short lived as the Arab League has been subject to infighting and ideological divisions that have hampered its military and ideological effectiveness. 

The 2012 rejection of Turkey and Iran’s application for observer status in the Arab League further highlighted the limitations of the organization in addressing large regional problems. Furthermore, isolating neighboring states such as Iran has only created a polarized regional environment that has given rise to greater sectarian tensions and terrorism.

The Gulf Cooperation Council founded in 1981 is a regional economic and political union of the Gulf states consisting of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, but does not include Iran, Iraq or Yemen. The GCC was formed in response to the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war, seeking greater unity in the face of regional threats. The six countries share certain commonalities including geographic proximity, energy resources and similar political systems consisting of monarchies or sheikhdoms. The collective defense force known as the Peninsula Shield was formed in 1984, but proved ineffective in countering Iraq’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait. 

During the 2011 Arab Spring protests, Peninsula Shield forces were dispatched to Bahrain to contain anti-government demonstrations. In the aftermath of these protests, Saudi Arabia unsuccessfully promoted the creation of a military and political union to thwart regional and internal threats. This failed effort at integration brought to light the many competing interests and infighting that has equally curbed GCC solidarity. Specifically, tensions at the time between Saudi Arabia and Qatar as well as frictions over relations with Iran and Iraq exposed the limitations of the GCC. 

While the effectiveness of multilateral organizations has often been called into question, they still remain a fixture of post-World War II politics. For example, despite historical and ideological differences at the United Nations Security Council, the United States and other permanent member states support the multilateral mandate of the institution. Most importantly such a setting provides a unique forum for greater discussion and collaboration yielding opportunities for progress on critical global initiatives ranging from literacy to domestic violence and climate change.

It is important to remember that the Middle East has yet to try its hand at this form of comprehensive and inclusive regional governance. Both the Arab League and GCC organizations are limited in scope and scale with neither venue providing for full representation for all Middle Eastern nations to air their grievances and discuss and collaborate on regional issues of importance. The region has historically eschewed collective responsibility, often blaming and marginalizing Iran rather than engaging in dialogue. The failed consequences of such behavior and policies are clearly evident in the violence and instability raging throughout the region.

As such, the timing for such an arrangement could not be better. For the first time in decades, Middle Eastern nations are united against a common enemy: ISIS. This threat coupled with the ambition to eradicate such terror is shared throughout the region. Such collaboration can serve as the basis for future cooperation on issues of stability, economic integration, drug trafficking and reducing sectarian tensions, to name a few.

If Obama is indeed interested in promoting regional responsibility then an all-encompassing Middle Eastern League of Nations is a necessary first step.