Saudi Arabia Just Refused to Let America Use Its Bases Against Iran — and Quietly Killed a Major U.S. Military Operation

When Washington launched its operation to break Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz, it counted on Saudi bases — and Riyadh said no. That refusal, per this analysis, is what really killed the mission, whatever Trump said publicly. Now the rumors are spreading: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain may be planning to shrink the American military presence to almost nothing, buying Russian and Chinese weapons and working with Tehran instead. The post-American Middle East may already be taking shape.