http://lobelog.com/president-obama-and-the-saudi-allies-its-complicated/#more-33676

President Obama and the Saudi Allies: It’s Complicated

by Cinzia Bianco and Giorgio Cafiero
Throughout Barack Obama’s presidency, the U.S. has faced unprecedented challenges across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The Obama administration’s response to these crises has created substantial friction between Washington and some of its allies in the Arabian Peninsula. The perception of the U.S. supporting the “Arab Spring” uprisings across the MENA region and Washington’s diplomatic overtures to Iran unsettle some Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) officials.
After Egypt’s “Arab Spring” revolution in 2011, the Saudis angrily accused Washington of dropping key U.S. ally Hosni Mubarak “like a used Kleenex.” The State Department’s criticism of Bahrain’s crackdown on political activists irked authorities in Manama. The U.S. refusal to intervene militarily in Syria against the Damascus regime frustrated Riyadh. Yet the geopolitical implications of last year’s watershed Iranian nuclear deal, which some GCC officials argue will increase the Islamic Republic’s influence across the Middle East, appear to represent the greatest source of tension in Washington-Riyadh relations. http://lobelog.com/president-obama-and-the-saudi-allies-its-complicated/#more-33676