# Trump's Middle East Deals Fuel Rivalries

> Trump's Middle East deals risk deepening rivalries among allies, undermining U.S. security interests.
- Title: Trump's Middle East Deals Fuel Rivalries · Foreign Policy
- Summary: Trump's Middle East deals risk deepening rivalries among allies, undermining U.S. security interests. Trump's Middle East deals are creating regional…
- Keywords: trump, middle east, saudi arabia, united arab emirates, israel, turkey, f-35, ai chips, nuclear cooperation, abraham accords, mecca defense pact, syria
- Source: Foreign Policy — https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/10/28/trump-middle-east-saudi-qatar-deals-syria-uae
- Author: Eitan Danon, Joshua Kram
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: trump, middle east, saudi arabia, united arab emirates, israel, turkey, f-35, ai chips, nuclear cooperation, abraham accords, mecca defense pact, syria
## Trump Administration Dealmaking
The Trump administration has signed a new trade agreement with Jordan, granted UAE access to advanced AI chips, lifted sanctions on Syria, approved F-35 sales to Saudi Arabia, approved arms for Israel, and signed a…
## Rivalry Among Partners
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are openly competing for regional leadership in economics and technology, while Israel and Turkey have grown increasingly antagonistic over Syria.
## Regional Arms Race Risk
U.S. deals could fuel a regional arms race and erode Israel's qualitative military edge, a cornerstone of U.S. defense policy.
## AI Duplication
Saudi Arabia and UAE are building competing national AI stacks using the same U.S. technology, creating duplication rather than synergy.
## U.S. Policy Risk
Washington lacks a strategy to weigh its deals against one another, risking its own policy goals in the region.
## Historical Context
Normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel was within reach before Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, attack but is now frozen.
## Mecca Defense Pact
Saudi Arabia has joined Pakistan and Turkey in the Mecca defense pact, signaling growing cooperation with regional rivals.
## U.S. Ambassadors' View
U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack stated, 'America as the guarantor to the world, for the last 80 years, it is no longer there. We don’t have a playbook.'

> America as the guarantor to the world, for the last 80 years, it is no longer there. …We don’t have a playbook. We’re all on audibles. We can go one play at a time.
## U.S. Policy Recommendations
The White House should establish a review process for multistakeholder deals to assess regional impacts before finalizing agreements.
## Economic Diplomacy Group
The U.S. Economic Diplomacy Action Group, chaired by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, coordinates commercial diplomacy across federal agencies.
## Pax Silica Initiative
The UAE, Qatar, and Israel are members of Pax Silica, an initiative to build AI infrastructure and supply chains.
## Incentivizing Cooperation
U.S. economic deals could be tied to deconfliction in Syria with Israel or investment in Syria’s reconstruction.
## Strategic Coherence
An ambassador-level regional coordinator is needed to ensure deals add up to more than the sum of their parts.
## Conclusion
Trump's Middle East deals risk deepening rivalries that undermine U.S. security interests, requiring strategic coherence to avoid unintended consequences.
## Key takeaway

Trump's Middle East deals are creating regional rivalries that could harm U.S. security interests.