Khashoggi assassination is changing the politics of the Middle East?

The Dhaka Times Desk After the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, an exiled journalist of Saudi Arabia, a fierce debate has started in the whole world including the Middle East. But what Khashoggi murder is changing the politics of the Middle East?

The brutal killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey has created a lot of tension between Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Not only Turkey, but several other western countries; This incident has also caused great concern for those who have long-standing political and business ties with Saudi Arabia.

It is believed that through these brutal events, a truly outrageous picture of the character of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who will lead Saudi Arabia for decades to come, is becoming increasingly clear.

The United States is deeply disturbed by the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. The Trump administration had hoped that the incident would end as quickly as possible, but many top US politicians are calling for a re-examination of US relations with Saudi Arabia after such an incident.

The BBC's Defense and Diplomacy Correspondent Jonathan Marcus says that exactly how Khashoggi was killed, and then where and how his body was buried; While searching for answers to these questions, the first question that came to the fore was who ordered his brutal murder.

According to media reports, this question may never be answered. However, from the information that has come out so far, many have definitely alleged that the order for this brutal killing may have come from the top man of the Saudi government, Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The Saudi crown prince, known as MBS, currently holds much of the country's power. Many Saudi experts believe that such a heinous killing is not possible without orders from the top. However, no clear evidence has yet been found about how directly involved with MBS. Now the question is - what kind of information does Turkey have in this regard? Basically a lot depends on it.

BBC journalist Jonathan Marcus also said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is playing with the Saudi crown prince "like a cat and mouse." From what he has told people about the murder, he seems to know a lot more than he does. However, it is still not clear how much he knows and what he knows.'

President Erdoğan has said that they are taking all legal measures, but the Turkish president has kept up the drama. Because he wants to keep MBS under as much pressure as possible - writes BBC journalist Jonathan Marcus.

One thing is that the two most important and active Sunni-dominated and controlled countries in Middle East politics are Saudi Arabia and Turkey. They are both seeking to take on greater leadership roles in Middle Eastern politics.

On the one hand, the assassination may increase President Erdogan's power inside Turkey, and on the other hand, it is believed to create an opportunity to improve relations with Washington.

Journalist Jonathan Marcus also said, if Erdogan can use this pressure on Saudi Arabia efficiently and if he uses it in time, he may be able to get more investment or economic aid from Saudi Arabia; This will help boost Turkey's weak economy to some extent.

As easy as it is for Turkey, it is becoming just as difficult for the US. The reason is that Washington has to look after its own interests on the one hand, and on the other hand it has to protect the political values that it talks about. This issue will not be limited to arms sales to Saudi Arabia. This arms sale is only part of the deep relationship that exists between these two countries. Behind this relationship there is also political calculation in the Middle East. Oil was once at the very center of this relationship. But that dependence is now much less than before.

Journalist Jonathan Markus also wrote that tensions between the United States and Saudi Arabia had been created before. However, after MBS came to power in Saudi Arabia, it took a more complicated form. After coming to power, the initiatives taken by him to reform the country have covered up many bad aspects of the policies he adopted. But the sad thing is that he could not hold it down for long. He is seen as the main protagonist of the attempt to isolate Qatar. He is also responsible for the kidnapping and detention of the Prime Minister of Lebanon for some time. On the other hand, this MBS is seen behind the recent debate with Canada on human rights and above all the military operation led by Saudi Arabia in Yemen.

Due to these various reasons, many people in Washington think that the policies adopted by MBS are not helpful in establishing peace in the Middle East, rather they are doing the opposite. The situation is made worse, because the Trump administration has put all its policy eggs in MBS's basket.

Journalist Jonathan Marcus also said that these policies have 3 goals.
First: Cooperation in the War on Terror.
Second: to encourage the Palestinians on President Donald Trump's peace plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Third: Another important policy is to isolate Iran along with Saudi Arabia.

For these reasons, the Trump administration wants the strange situation created around Khashoggi's murder to end as soon as possible. That is why there may be no opportunity to re-evaluate the relationship of the United States with Saudi Arabia during the Trump regime.

Will Saudi Arabia then take any steps that will lead to reining in the power of Prince MBS? However, last week at a conference of the Economic Forum, MBS seemed to have no problems inside the country.

Russia, on the other hand, has indicated that they are watching everything from the side-lines. They are asking to believe only Saudi Arabia's commentary on this murder. The reason for this is believed to be that Russia is also currently interested in selling weapons to Saudi Arabia.

Russian President Putin himself wants to increase his influence and role in the Middle East. It will not be possible for Saudi Arabia to turn to China for weapons from Western countries too quickly. The reason is that they have been conducting operations in Yemen with western weapons, trainers and advisors.

But one thing is that there are different positions between the United States and its allies regarding arms sales to Saudi Arabia. For that reason, if they cannot take measures together, there is no possibility of any change in the relationship between Western countries and Saudi Arabia for the time being. At least not until there is a power shift in the White House.

All in all, it is now almost as clear as water that the murder of Saudi journalist Khashoggi could change the politics of the Middle East. But only time will tell what is going to happen.