In this Lowy Institute Analysis, Research Fellow Associate Professor Rodger Shanahan examines how Arab Gulf States, led by Saudi Arabia, are responding to the Obama administration’s less interventionist approach to the Middle East by adopting a more assertive regional policy aimed at containing Iran diplomatically and militarily.

Key findings

• The Sunni Arab world perceives the United States to be less interested and less interventionist in support of their interests, and under Saudi leadership has adopted a more assertive regional foreign policy with the aim of restricting Iranian influence in the region.
• So far this more assertive policy has had mixed results and seems unlikely to succeed.
• Unless a modus vivendi is established between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the proxy war between these two countries will continue to destabilise the region.