Historically, the US has invested in a strategy of isolation against its adversaries, trying to make them international “pariahs”.
Since the Cold War, economic embargoes, sanctions, and blockades have been central elements of American praxis to face its geopolitical adversaries. Currently, the US foreign policy is even more based on this type of attitude, as we can see with the recent coercive measures imposed against Russia, China, and other emerging countries.
However, some authorities believe that this strategy generates a boomerang effect and harms the US itself. Attempting to create global “pariahs”, Washington itself is seen as a pariah by other nations, which progressively begin to choose other partnerships and isolate the US. This, for example, is the opinion of Diane Sare, an independent Senate candidate who is competing for the New York seat.
In a recent interview with Russian media, Sare stated that Saudi Arabia’s desire to join the BRICS indicates that the US is becoming “the isolated nation, the pariah nation”. According to her, the foreign policy of the current administration is pushing allies away and making them look for other countries to establish cooperation agreements. Sare does not believe that threats and sanctions are the appropriate way to try to solve this problem, proposing changes in the way Washington is conducting its international relations.
Sare also made some considerations about the risk of US coercive measures generating widespread tensions, even escalating to more dangerous paths, such as war. She points out the American nuclear power as a problem in this scenario, as the country seems to be managed by irresponsible people, unconscious of their own potential, who would be capable of causing destruction and chaos if they lost control over the international situation.
“I don’t think it’s right for Biden to threaten Saudi Arabia given what we have been doing with our sanctions and the price of oil (…) The danger is that we do have the nuclear arsenal. I fear we have some people who have absolutely no conscience, who are prepared to unleash hideous destruction of people. That’s why it’s very urgent that we get off the trajectory that we are on”, she said during the interview.
Indeed, Sare’s assessment and advice seem correct when we remember that US aggressions against Russia and China also began with the mere imposition of sanctions and quickly escalated into a proxy war in Ukraine and a series of unjustified military provocations against Beijing in Taiwan. Obviously, the situation with Saudi Arabia is much more stable and is far from becoming a military risk, but care is needed given that friction is growing, and that recent US history shows that the country is unwilling to tolerate any form of opposition.
The Saudi case is particularly curious, as the deterioration in bilateral relations between the US and the Kingdom was one of the central characteristics of the Biden administration. Since its inauguration, the Democrat has worked against cooperation between Washington and Riyadh, refusing to talk to Saudi officials or to visit the country. Biden even tried to suspend the bilateral arms trade, but his plans were thwarted by the strong US private military industry.
The President justified his actions primarily with humanitarian rhetoric, arguing that the Saudi Kingdom is a dictatorship that violates human rights and should therefore be “punished”. The situation worsened when Biden began publicly calling Saudi Arabia a “pariah” after US intelligence reported the Saudi government’s role in the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, a progressive journalist known for his criticism against the Crown.
Months later, Biden has even tried to improve his relations with the Saudis, as this has become an inevitable step for the US in the face of the failure to engage in diplomatic dialogue with Iran as well as the current heightened world tensions. However, the Kingdom is not interested in accepting to be subservient to Washington again and has already shown that it will seek to have its interests served first.
Saudi Arabia has cooperated with Russia to readjust the global price of oil and has recently stated that it is highly interested in joining the BRICS. In practice, this was a sovereigntist turn that strongly hurt American interests, as it brought the Kingdom closer to Washington’s greatest geopolitical enemies.
It is important to note that historically Saudi Arabia and the US are strong allies and how it was precisely the US interventionist ambition that hampered this relationship. To “punish” the Kingdom for matters that concern only itself, the US tried to make Riyadh a pariah, but it damaged its own international image, making it an undesirable partnership.
The Saudi case is an example of how American foreign policy is leading the country towards progressive isolation. In the near future, other states will realize how disadvantageous it is to serve American interests and will begin to seek cooperation with the BRICS and other emerging countries, forming an international order where relations are based on pragmatism, not ideological interventionism.
Written by Lucas Leiroz, researcher in Social Sciences at the Rural Federal University of Rio de Janeiro; geopolitical consultant.