Tides and ties are changing in the Middle East. The very first sign (though not fully confirmed yet) of that was the OPEC deal. With the help of Russian federation, two major arch rivals, Iran and Saudi Arabia could set aside their differences and agree to a potential deal of production freeze/cut. Saudi Arabia, which for more than a year and a half resisted the production cut without Iran joining in agreed on special provisions for not only Iran but for Libya and Nigeria as well.

While this was widely reported in the global media, what caught little or no attentions are small shifts in the Middle East. Last month, Russia and Egypt announced joint military drills for the very first time. In addition to that, Russia would sell attack helicopters to Egypt and invest billions of dollars in the country’s infrastructure. Saudi Arabia, irritated by Egyptian leaders’ lack of interest to get involved in the war in Yemen, it has announced and halted major crude oil products delivery to Egypt. Now, came the best part. Egypt said that it would turn to Iran, the rival of Saudi Arabia in the region for oil products. It is important to note that the Egypt and Iran had strained relations for more than four decades. So this is not just a shift but a major one.