Flexibility marks strategic reshuffle in Middle East By Rana Mazid | China Daily | Updated: 2026-06-29 08:58

https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202606/29/WS6a41c32ca310986e2b46258d.html For decades, the Middle East's strategic map was deceptively simple. Washington was the indispensable architect, and most Arab states built their security, economy, and foreign policies around that pillar. But the US-Israeli war against Iran shattered that old order. As Iranian missiles struck Saudi energy facilities and US bases in Bahrain and Qatar, Gulf states realized the harsh truth that the US security umbrella was no longer absolute. The era of unchallenged US primacy was giving way to a fluid, multipolar order.