With Friends Like "US"

Ah well, see ya, Afghanistan ! Let's change our Facebook status to, uh "It's complicted." Like just about all of the United States' long-term relationships of late.

Okay, so maybe it's not the worst thing in the world that the United States and, say, Saudi Arabia aren't literally walking hand in hand (as George W. Bush and Crown Prince Abdullah did in this, ahem, awkward moment in 2005). But, as the Los Angeles Times points out, the alliance is at a more strained point than it has been in many years. The Saudis are, for example, counseling Jordan to maintain its traditional autocratic monarchical hold on power -- even as Washington has been trying to nudge its smaller ally to head in a pro-democratic direction:

Riyadh, which believes the U.S. is turning its back on loyal allies, is trying to step out of America's shadow. It is embracing a foreign policy that often diverges from Washington's — and sometimes seeks to undermine it.
On the key political issues "the Obama administration doesn't really listen to the Saudi views," said Abdullah Askar, who is vice chairman of the foreign affairs committee of the king's Consultative Council, or Majlis Shura, in Riyadh.
This shift doesn't mean the end of the 70-year-old U.S.-Saudi alliance, which is built on a simple foundation: Saudi oil for U.S. military protection. But it means a further loss of influence for Washington in the Middle East at a time when other crucial relations — with Egypt and Turkey, for example — are facing new strains.

Ah, further "loss of influence for Washington"! Where have we heard that one before? Arguably, trying to expand democracy in the Middle East is a good thing, but then we're faced with an Obama administration that doesn't seem to know which way to go (call for Mubarak's ouster; don't call for Assad's in Syria; look the other way when Saudi Arabia sends in troops to crush protestors in Bahrain). The only consistency is lack of consistency.

And then, add that to how the U.S. has treated other traditional allies -- from the sublime snubs to the 'border'-line tragic .

No wonder so many of America's closest partners might be thinking to themselves -- with friends like "US," who needs enemies?


Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/capitol/with_friends_like_us_T6XXyR2KTn8qaG8BoZHfwO#ixzz1Q9KRiXh5