Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent visit to the region signals a welcome shift in the attitude of the countries in this part of the world toward a powerful country in the East.

Countries that had in the past historically aligned themselves with the US and its regional interests have begun a slow process of disengagement, following the adage, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

This move, although unhurried in coming, is a result primarily of the current US administration’s policies and continuing aggressive military overtures in the region, which have dramatically added to unease and unrest among nations, not to mention the enormous and unjustified human death toll and suffering.

Putin’s visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan, a first by a Russian president, was accorded a very public and warm welcome signaling the host countries’ desire to forge significant political and economic alliances with their powerful counterparts in the East including Russia and China.

It is no secret that Putin himself is dismayed by what he sees as unrestrained US aggression in the region. Speaking at the 43rd Munich conference on security policy last week, he said, “We, Russia, are constantly being taught about democracy. But for some reason those who teach us do not want to learn themselves. I believe that unipolarity is not only unacceptable but also impossible in today’s world. The model itself is flawed: At its root it provides no moral foundations for modern civilization. But witnessed in today’s world is a tendency to introduce precisely this concept into international affairs, the concept of a unipolar world. And with what results?”

“Unilateral and frequently illegitimate actions have not resolved any problems. Moreover, they have caused new human tragedies and created new centers of tension. Judge for yourselves: Wars as well as local and regional conflicts have not diminished. And even more are dying than before. Many more.”

And in a further dig at the hawkish stance that underlies US diplomacy, he continued, “Today we are witnessing an almost unrestrained hyper use of force — military force — in international relations, a force that is plunging the world into an abyss of permanent conflicts. As a result we do not have sufficient strength to find a comprehensive solution to any one of these conflicts. Finding a political settlement also becomes impossible. We are seeing a greater and greater disdain for the basic principles of international law. One country, the United States, has overstepped its national borders in every way. This is visible in the economic, political, cultural and educational policies it imposes on other nations.”

Those are the very views that are being realized by regional governments. The US has overstepped its authority in its quest to stamp its own distorted vision on the region. And for any government to ally itself lock, stock and barrel with such an administration would be tantamount to political suicide. The ordinary Arabs see the Russians as friends. They have long been supportive of the Palestinians, and have demonstrated such support in the United Nations. Along with their current diplomatic profile, common economic interests in the region such as oil and gas, science and technology, and the choice of military hardware present them an attractive alternative to the West

Unlike the current US administration that has seemingly forgotten how to win or maintain existing friends, the Russians are quietly and gradually making the right diplomatic overtures in gaining economic and political footholds in a previously inaccessible territory. And doing it all without a hint of aggression.