Barrack: Region fears U.S. will leave it alone with Iran, a 'wounded lion'

U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack told CNN that regional states believe America will eventually go home and leave them facing a weakened but dangerous Iran, while saying Washington is "very close" to a pause in hostilities.

U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack said countries in the Middle East expect the United States to eventually pull back from the region, leaving them to deal with a weakened but still dangerous Iran.

"Look, the region says: 'America, you're eventually going to go home. We know you're going to go home, and we're going to be left with this wounded lion,'" Barrack said in an interview with CNN's Becky Anderson for the network's Global Perspectives event in Doha on Oct. 29.

'Very close' to a timeout

Barrack, who also serves as U.S. special envoy for Syria, said a comprehensive settlement with Tehran was unlikely in the near term but that he was confident the sides could agree on a pause. "I think we're very close to finally getting to a place where we can say: let's just have a timeout," he said. "We're not going to have an overall solution immediately, but we can allow the region to find its own pace."

He suggested tensions could ease within two weeks and referred to a seven-day option that Qatar had put to Iran, which he said was still under consideration. He did not say Iran had accepted any proposal.

Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan reach out to Tehran

Barrack credited regional partners with mediation efforts, saying "Qatar, Pakistan and all of our allies have done a good job," and noting that "we have Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye traveling to Iran to try to lower the temperatures." He argued that regional governments can manage their own relations with Iran and the security of Gulf waterways, adding: "The U.S. can't solve everything."

He also acknowledged the difficulty of dealing with Tehran during the war: "As we eliminate our counterparties within Iran, communication becomes much more difficult." On Israel, he said: "The path is not a Greater Israel, and I think that's an illusion."

The remarks came as Vice President JD Vance's letter to Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei, offering direct talks in Istanbul or Doha, put diplomacy back in focus ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.

Have a story, event or announcement of your own?Send us your news on WhatsApp

Spotted an error in this story?Report it on WhatsApp

Share on all social platforms