However “there’s been more consistency from the US in recent months in terms of what it wants to see materialise,” said Ms Boghardt in reference to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s trip to Riyadh and his close relationship with Mr Trump.
Mr Pompeo has expressed his desire to see the Gulf dispute eased and eventually resolved, saying that the rift benefits Iran. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has been learning to deal with the new status quo of the continued standoff, and in May, had all the GCC members agree on new sanctions against senior figures of the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah.
Although US efforts to resolve the dispute are ongoing, Washington's mediation will continue to be challenged if the Trump administration does not settle for a coherent position or come to fully understand the region's changing dynamics.
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