As US President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office on January 20, Middle Eastern countries expect changes in Washington's policy towards the region.

At a time when countries seek to preserve the gains achieved during the administration of President Donald Trump, others are hoping for a new beginning and the next administration’s interest in crises in the region.

Egypt .. the president congratulates and the "Brotherhood" hopes for a change

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi was among the first to congratulate Biden shortly after the results of the victory were announced, which indicates the direction of the Egyptian political leadership to work with the new administration.

With Biden's victory, local Egyptian media confirmed that relations between Washington and Cairo will not be shaken, but the Egyptian opposition hopes to support the new US administration, especially after it has received strong blows since Sisi took power in 2014.

The Muslim Brotherhood was also quick to congratulate Biden, and demanded that he change the US policy towards the Egyptian regime, citing his previous statement that "there will be no more blank checks for Trump's favorite dictators."

However, observers do not pin much hope for the Biden administration to change its policy in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood.

They point out that the late President Mohamed Morsi, the first democratically elected president in Egypt, was overthrown through a military coup on July 3, 2013, when Biden was vice president of former US President Barack Obama.


They also believe that Biden's policies will not carry any radical changes, adding that his actions will be limited to media statements about human rights and public freedoms.

Palestine .. breathed a sigh of relief and no radical changes

The Palestinians breathed a sigh of relief at Trump's loss in the elections, but at the same time they did not expect Biden to radically change US support for Israel.

The Palestinians suffered greatly during the Trump era, due to his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December 2017 and the transfer of the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in May 2018.

His reign also saw the reduction of aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in January 2018, before cutting all aid after 7 months.

In response, the Palestinian Authority announced cutting ties with the Trump administration and rejecting the US mediation role.


And last January, Trump announced the Middle East peace plan known as the "Deal of the Century", which the Palestinians considered a way to liquidate their cause and end efforts for a two-state solution to the conflict with Israel.

The alleged peace plan also paved the way for two US-brokered normalization agreements between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan.

Saudi Arabia .. Wait to re-evaluate the relationship

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has yet to sign a normalization agreement with Israel, although Israeli officials indicated that it is a matter of time and will eventually happen.

In contrast to Trump, Riyadh will be at odds with Biden, over his statements during his election campaign that showed his dissatisfaction with Saudi policies and his intention to reassess relations with them.

To date, Saudi officials implicated in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in his country's consulate in Istanbul in October 2018 have not been brought to trial.

The Saudi authorities have repeatedly denied accusations of human rights violations, as has the involvement of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Khashoggi's murder.

Yemen .. aspirations to end the war

With military, political, and logistical aid, the Trump administration has played a vital role in supporting the Saudi-Emirati coalition against the Yemeni Houthi movement.

As a result of this active role of the Trump administration in supporting the coalition, the Houthi group has accused Washington of continuing to lead the coalition's military operations in Yemen.

The announcement of Biden’s victory in the US presidency aroused the interest of many Yemenis who expressed their hope that the new US leadership would seek to play a pivotal role in ending the war raging in Yemen for 6 years.

Yemen has been suffering an ongoing war between pro-government forces and Houthi militants who control governorates, including the capital, Sana'a (north), since September 2014.

The war left 112,000 dead, including 12,000 civilians, and 80% of the population - about 30 million people - depend on aid to stay alive, in the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to the United Nations.

The crisis escalated in 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition launched an aerial bombing campaign for Houthi forces to roll back their gains on the ground.

On a large scale, Biden is seen by Yemenis as opposing the policies of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman regarding the decision for the Yemen war.

Iran .. seize the opportunity to lift the sanctions

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani stated that his government would use "every opportunity" to lift the US sanctions on it on the basis of Iran's "constructive participation" with the world.

"Our goal is to lift the unjust sanctions, and whenever we see an opportunity (to achieve this), we will do our work," Rouhani added during a cabinet meeting in Tehran.

Soon after Biden led Trump in the presidential election, the Iranian rial recorded a significant recovery.


Washington withdrew from the nuclear deal with Tehran in May 2018, and in August of the same year, it imposed sanctions on Tehran to push it to sign a new agreement and limit its regional influence.

Sanctions targeting key sectors have nearly destroyed the country's financial market, making the Iranians hope for Biden to win.

Biden announced earlier that he would return to the nuclear agreement signed with Iran if he wins the elections, with the assurance that he would "prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon."

Lebanon..pending US-Iranian relations

Lebanon - which is facing a severe political and economic crisis - is one of Iran's cards that can be used to bridge points of view with the United States.

After the US media announced Biden’s victory, a state of hope reigned in the Lebanese street.

According to observers, Biden's victory will pave the way for a return to the nuclear deal with Iran, which will have an impact in the Middle East, including Lebanon.

Lebanon is currently struggling to form a government, and Tehran is considered a major influence in the country's internal affairs by supporting Shiite groups, especially the armed group Hezbollah.

After Biden takes office, the United States may not be firmly against representing Hezbollah in the Lebanese government.

Biden's policy is also expected to facilitate the ongoing indirect talks between Lebanon and Israel regarding the demarcation of the maritime borders, and alleviate the difficult conditions of the country by obtaining economic support from the West.