Because she knows her interests better than others
Middle Eastern countries achieve diplomatic breakthroughs without US intervention
The Egyptian diplomacy worked for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
AFP
Al-Sisi received a call from the US President, in which he thanked him for his country's successful diplomacy.
Reuters
A central tenet of the Biden administration is a return to diplomacy.
AFP
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One of the main principles of the administration of US President Joe Biden is a return to diplomacy, as part of how the United States presents itself after the "unending wars" in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Returning to the Paris climate agreement, reopening negotiations on US participation in the Iran nuclear deal, visiting allies to show respect for them and the value of alliances with them, restoring confidence and the central role of the US State Department, filling senior positions that have long been vacant, and appointing many diplomats Professionals in many major political jobs.
But there is a lot of diplomatic action going on in key regions of the world, in which the United States is not a major player, or even where it is not present.
Is this a sign of diminishing American power?
There are other countries that may direct their attention to areas where they see a leadership vacuum, or they may take the initiative because they know that their interests in a particular conflict are completely different from those of America.
Is the Biden administration trying to violate the trend it presented through the message it sent to the world, which is "We shall return"?
Let us take the last case, in which diplomacy worked to bring about a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
According to what is known, the Egyptians coordinated with "Hamas" and Israel.
President Biden admitted that his contacts with the former Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, were aimed at supporting Egyptian efforts, and were not a diplomatic initiative put forward by his administration in parallel with Egypt.
He thanked Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi for his successful diplomacy in a call with him on January 25.
A new Iraqi role
A similar result in the region is the Saudi-Iranian dialogue, in which Iraq acted as a mediator.
Although the Iraqi government downplayed its involvement, it turned out that it was Iraqi intelligence officers, not the US State Department, who deserved credit for this breakthrough between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Yet such a channel between the two sides could pave the way for a larger diplomatic process.
This is a significant shift given that Iraq was a wounded and weak party for several years after the US invasion in 2003. Now Iraq is recovering and finding that its unique relations with Iran offer it some leverage and credibility to facilitate the de-escalation of tension between Riyadh and Tehran.
During the long-running Syrian civil war, Turkey presented itself as a prominent diplomatic player, due to its large border with Syria, in addition to its security concerns about the possibility of the Kurds emerging as an independent political player.
Turkish partner
Turkey's efforts were often in conflict with US interests in the region, and at times it acted as a partner of Moscow.
In fact, when Turkey joined the Astana process in an attempt to negotiate a settlement to the conflict in Syria, Washington saw in it that a NATO member was working with Moscow and Tehran.
This seems to have succeeded in achieving contradictory goals, which the United States and the United Nations have worked for many years to implement.
An unexpected sign that small states are playing larger diplomatic roles has been the efforts made by Eritrea to defuse the tension between Sudan and Ethiopia.
For several decades, Eritrea was a victim of the hegemonic schemes of the stronger Ethiopia, but this changed because of Ethiopia's need to support Eritrea in its struggle against the powerful Tigrayan minority.
Eritrea has seized the opportunity to demonstrate its adeptness in balancing its more powerful neighbour, and has demonstrated that it can be a sovereign player in regional relations.
This does not mean that Eritrea will embody the ideals of statesmanship, but rather that diplomacy is a feature and effects of national power, but completely separate from military power.
America is watching
In all of these cases, the United States was watching, supporting, but not leading.
The cautious neo-realism of America's national security project may be comforting to her, with regional states taking the lead in resolving the conflicts in their region.
In theory, this has long been desirable, and has been mentioned in many presidential speeches about domestic responsibilities.
Former US President Barack Obama believed that solutions to regional problems would be better, more permanent and legitimate if they were made by the people directly affected by them.
But in practice, many countries with competent diplomatic officials still prefer to wait for a cue of American intentions, believing that mega-summits and local conferences simply cannot happen without American organizational skills and significant political clout.
One should not assume that small states like Eritrea are new to the diplomatic field.
rich experiences
On the contrary, Egypt, Turkey, and Iran have a great history and legacy as countries with skilled diplomats, and great influence to mediate, whether in the United Nations, where Egypt was in a confrontation with the United States for a demilitarized zone in the Middle East, on the contrary. For example, or in Turkey when Turkish President Turgut Ozal worked tirelessly behind the scenes during the Iran-Iraq war with the aim of reaching its end. But the presentation of these stories along with the trajectory of American influence and the desire of several successive American presidents to reduce the United States' involvement in the Middle East suggests that a new paradigm is emerging.
As for those who accept the school of "restraint" in international relations, assuming that ending US hegemony in the Middle East is good for domestic peace and security, these trends are positive and a sign of the maturity of politics in the region.
If the United States steps aside and does not impose its agenda on the region, all sides may be more inclined to make concessions and find a way to live more lastingly for all.
Elaine Lipson ■Former Vice Chair of the US National Security Council
Egypt, Turkey, and Iran, have a great history and legacy as countries with skilled diplomats, and great influence to mediate, whether in the United Nations, where Egypt was in a confrontation with the United States for a demilitarized zone in the Middle East, for example, Or in Turkey, when Turkish President Turgut Ozal worked tirelessly behind the scenes during the Iran-Iraq war with the aim of finding a halt to it.
• An unexpected sign of small countries playing larger diplomatic roles was the efforts made by Eritrea to defuse the tension between Sudan and Ethiopia.
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