Did the Saudi-Iran meeting accomplish anything?

Whether the Saudi-Iran meeting this weekend accomplished anything tangible is irrelevant. Ultimately, this will likely be considered one of those watershed moments when relations between counties make a significant change in direction. Before this meeting, a lot of things were deeply adrift in the Middle East. Now, after this meeting, there may be the seeds of a sense that the "neighbors" can come together and forge some sense of direction for the region, rather than drift aimlessly and let interlopers such as the U.S. invade and wreak their own form of havoc.

I absolutely do not expect any significant tangible actions in the near term, and it will be very difficult to say with any certainty whether ideas discussed at the meeting will have had any influence on how events unfold over the coming weeks, months, and years, but I have a suspicion that there will be some influence. Whether that influence ends up being a  big net positive remains to be seen.

In any case, I do consider the meeting itself a positive and progress.

-- Jack Krupansky