Many regional and international actors breathed a sigh of relief when a very tense standoff passed without detonating a war in the Gulf. Nerves had been stretched to breaking point for weeks, as US warships faced Iranian defence in the Gulf, threats and ultimatums grew more strident, and oil prices soared. Fortunately, Arab and Islamic powers managed to make their voices heard regarding the risks of a bilateral confrontation spiralling into a multilateral one, and the immense destruction such a conflict would cause.
The negotiating format in Oman – a closed meeting, limited to the two parties, with no media presence – was well suited to produce an outcome of sorts. While the result was not decisive, both delegations returned to their respective bases without declaring war, yet with no sign of an agreement either. In effect, they pressed “pause,” leaving the hazard flashers of their war machines on. In diplomacy this opens the door to further talks and another opportunity.
Israel, meanwhile, was not sitting idly by. As busy as it was creating de facto realities on the ground in the West Bank and altering Palestinian existence as a whole, while simultaneously taming the Lebanese and Syrian fronts, it was also preparing for Netanyahu’s seventh trip to the US since Trump returned to office. The aim, in short, is to reshape the Middle East – not through the Abraham Accords, normalisation, and peace, but by taking control of the entire region, after clipping the wings of the forces that obstruct this goal, while taking maximum advantage of their folly.
What Israel wants from this trip is to present itself alongside Washington as a single front, as was the case in the two-day war against Iran last summer. It also wants to make Trump’s statements rejecting its own moves to annex the West Bank and Gaza, appear as though they were no more than rhetorical gestures of no consequence. However, the core issue between the two partners is the “Iranian question”. This is directly related to Israel’s designs for the region, which entails remaining the only state in the Middle East that possesses nuclear weapons – at least 200 nuclear warheads, according to informed estimates. So Israel’s main objectives are to prevent Iran from acquiring the capacity for uranium enrichment and other requirements for developing nuclear arms, as well as the missiles to deliver them. No less important an aim is to sever Iran’s limbs in Lebanon (Hizbullah) and in Yemen (the Houthis).
In exchange for US support on these matters, Israel may show some “flexibility” regarding Gaza – so long as Trump turns a blind eye to what is taking place in the West Bank. At the time of writing, little information is available on the substance of the talks between Netanyahu and Trump, nor on how far Israel has gone in pushing for war to resume and perhaps taking part in it itself. In any case, the visit builds pressure on the current holding pattern that offers Arab powers a window to prevent the outbreak of war.
This brings us to the forthcoming meeting of the “Peace Council” on 19 February. That council, created and chaired by Trump, will bring together several Arab and Islamic states as well as Israel, and it will present a valuable opportunity to advance the Arab position, which calls for deferring war against Iran in order to advance regional peace and a solution to the Palestinian question. However, until recently, the Arab position has been weakened by instability in several Arab states – especially in Yemen and Sudan – and differing perspectives on the “geopolitical” situation.
Fortunately, much progress has been made towards bridging differences during that past week. The bulk of it is probably due to Israeli arrogance as it persists with settlement expansion, annexing parts of the West Bank, and undermining the Oslo Accords. The UAE’s warning that it is reassessing whether to continue with the Abraham Accords is a cue for closer Arab coordination, especially among states that have signed peace treaties with Israel. They must act quickly and in concert, not only to prevent a US-Iranian war but also to halt the latest, widely condemned Israeli wave of territorial annexation and dismantling of the Oslo Accords.
The forthcoming Peace Council presents two opportunities for the Arab participants. The first is to initiate an Arab-Israeli peace process to put existing agreements back on track or expose the true extent of Israeli intransigence. The second is to boost relations among leading Arab states and give new impetus to their drive to achieve regional stability.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 19 February, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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