Jordan's King Abdullah II In Interview With General H. R. McMaster: Russia's Withdrawal From Southern Syria Creates A Vacuum To Be Filled By Iran And Its Proxies; We Hope Dialogue With Iran Will Have A Positive Effect

On May 19, 2022, a video was uploaded to the RHC JO YouTube channel, which belongs to Jordan's Royal Hashemite Court, of Jordan's King Abdullah II being interviewed by former U.S. National Security Advisor General (Ret.) H. R. McMaster on "Battlegrounds," an interview series hosted by Stanford University's Hoover Institution. When asked about the regional threat posed by Iran, King Abdullah said that there are several security challenges, despite the dialogue taking place between Iran, and the Gulf states and Saudi Arabia. He elaborated that the Jordanian border is regularly attacked and that the withdrawal of Russian forces from southern Syria has created a vacuum that will be filled by Iran and its proxies, which may result in an escalation in the region. In addition, he said that he hopes that the American and Arab dialogue with Iran will move things in a positive direction, but that this is not visible on the ground at the moment.

General H. R. McMaster: "What can be done about the Iranian problem?"

King Abdullah II: "So, I think that it's happening on multiple avenues. [The] kingdom of Saudi Arabia is reaching out the Iranians, Gulf Countries have a dialogue.

"I'm not too sure how tactical or strategic from the Iranian point of view that is. Obviously, we want everyone to be part of a new Middle East and to move forward, but we do have security challenges. We are seeing border attacks on a regular basis, and we know who is behind that. One of the issues that we are studying at this point, whether people like to hear this or not, the presence of the Russians in the south in Syria, was a source of calm because they were making sure that we could deconflict. And if you remember correctly, there was a deconfliction center between the United States and Russia in Jordan, to make sure that [there were] more good days than bad days.

"That vacuum will be filled by the Iranians and their proxies. So, unfortunately, we are looking at maybe an escalation [of] problems on our borders. So do the politics, [and] the negotiations going on between Saudi Arabia, the Gulf Countries, the United States, does that move Iran into a [more] positive light? I hope so. I am not seeing it on the ground at the moment."