merica seems to be in a desperate bid to perpetuate its influence in South Asia. The pattern of voting in the UN General Assembly on Russian military action against Ukraine, was indicative of a paradigm shift in South Asian foreign policy options.
Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India abstained from voting, demonstrating an impartiality the USA found hard to digest. The shift pointed to the waxing of Sino-Russian influence. This was enough to ring alarm bells in Washington DC. South Asia holds significance because it borders on China, Russia, Iran, Central Asian States and the Gulf region.
Importantly, both Saudi Arabia which wields overriding influence in the region and Iran which has its own sphere of influence have less than an ideal relationship with the USA. Iran has more than 40 years of history of animosity with the USA. Saudi Arabia has been alienated recently because of Joe Biden’s myopic vision in dealing with America’s long-term strategic partners including Saudi Arabia.
Turkey has reviewed its foreign policy options in the recent past. Tayyip Erdogan has demonstrated independence in the formulation of its multilateral relationship. Unlike his predecessors, Erdogan has thrown his weight behind the endeavours to re-invigorate an Islamic block, This didn’t go well with the Americans.
One can see a thaw in Turkey’s relations with Russia which has added an insult to injury. On top of it, several attempts to depose Erdogan have failed. The USA is therefore in a…
