The conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been going on for decades and the two countries Have yet to arrive to a peaceful resolution.

There has been talk on where each couture is getting the support and the resources from, but after U.S. coordinating with Saudi on stepping up the sanctions on Iran, we now know where the White House stands.

What are the sanctions?

U.S. sanctions on Iran have been in place since 1979 after a group of radical students took hostages of the people inside the American Embassy in Tehran.

In 1984 the sanctions were approved to prohibit all U.S. assistance to Iran, including any military support and international trades.

These sanctions were lifted after the 2015 nuclear deal, however, last year Trump administration decided to reimpose them. Coming back stronger than ever, those sanctions made it harder than ever for Iran to benefit from any oil trades, which are one of Iran’s main sources of profit in the international market.

Last week the United States once again tightened the sanctions on Iranian oil. This may result in Iran removing another five hundred thousand barrels per day from the market, meanwhile, the oil production in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia is rising.

Why is the U.S. set on supporting Saudi Arabia?

These new sanctions clearly demonstrate the influence that Saudi Arabia has on the foreign policy of the United States. Many government officials, including the members of U.S. Congress, have questioned Trumps woes when it comes to his relationship with Saudi Arabia and how important it is to preserve this relationship.

There are plenty of factors that should have jeopardised international trade and relationship between those two countries.

The infamous assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi that was ordered by Saudi’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman or the countless deaths in Yemen that Saudi is also responsible for could all be laid reasons for all trades and contracts to be terminated.

However, Trump does not seem to care about those things, as despite those reasons he continues to trade with Saudi Arabia. Trump is excusing his actions by saying that a country with such resources would still prosper on an international scale and if they won’t trade with the U.S. they will with someone else.

Long story short, the Trump administration considers Saudi Arabia too useful to let those reasons, or any reasons for that matter, to stop them from trading and building a relationship on an international sale.

Assiya Mukhamedrakhimova