Arab Nations Should Adopt One Regional Policy - Newspaper

Arab countries should repair their multilateral relations and work together to fill the vacuum created by the United States in the Middle East, said Bassam Hashem in an October 4 op-ed article in the official newspaper, al-Baath.



Washington did not intend to implement any effective policies in the Middle East, he said, adding that this would leave a “worrying strategic vacuum” in the region.



Arab nations would be confronted with an uncertain future, he warned.



Hashem said that US president Barack Obama lacked the determination to solve the region’s problems, adding that pressure from lobby groups - a reference, mainly, to the Jewish lobby in the US - made him incapable of advancing the situation in the Middle East.



He argued that instabilities in the region continued, giving as examples the troubled situations in Iraq and Lebanon and the building of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.



The columnist concluded that the current situation should drive Arab states to unite without delay and come up with a joint policy for the region.

He said that Damascus wanted to stand up for other Arab states that he described as “trusted, appreciated and welcomed” by Syria. He was referring to Saudi Arabia, whose King Abdullah is expected to visit Damascus soon.