On Friday, diplomatic relations between two long-time Middle East foes, Iran and Saudi Arabia, were finally restored. The deal, which was brokered by China, wasn't an alliance, but the symbolic import is clear – a rebuke of President Biden's hostility to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS).

The agreement comes after U.S. failed negotiations to reconcile the two countries in 2021. China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, praised the move as "victory for dialogue" and the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his appreciation to China for being the mediator.

Aaron David Miller, a former policy adviser at the State Department for 25 years, met the news with surprise. He believes that it “demonstrates that U.S.'s influence and credibility in that region has diminished and that there is a new sort of international regional alignment taking place, which has