Mojtaba Khamenei Promotes New Anti-US Alliance as Gulf Backchannel Reaches Tehran, Analysts Say

(SeaPRwire) –   An analyst warned Sunday that Iran’s supreme leader has launched a broad counteroffensive against U.S. President Donald Trump, working to rally Middle Eastern nations into an anti-American alliance.

This aggressive move came just hours after Trump proposed expanding the Abraham Accords. According to the analyst, Tehran is seeking to position itself as the region’s “new sheriff”, while forcing Gulf states that maintain backchannels to Iran to choose between Washington’s security umbrella and a “New Islamic Civilization”.

As of Sunday, negotiations between Iran and the United States remained ongoing, and Trump had not yet approved any potential peace deal.

Trump recently held a phone call with leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain to discuss expanding the 2020 Abraham Accords, and shared a related post on Truth Social on May 25.

Mojtaba Khamenei released a direct counter-response on the platform X on May 26, calling for a “New Islamic Civilization” targeted at those same regional capitals.

“With sincere and pure intentions, I invite all Islamic countries and governments to friendship and cooperation for goodness, so that working together we can take steps to advance the Islamic Ummah and resolve the problems of the Islamic world,” Khamenei posted.

While highlighting “the nations of the region” and “common interests that will shape the new order and the future framework of the region and the world”, he referenced “the Islamic Ummah and the #New_Islamic_Civilization”.

“The United States will no longer have a safe haven for its mischief-making or establishing military bases in West Asia,” he also warned.

“Mojtaba Khamenei’s statement makes clear that the Muslim world should unify under Iran’s leadership — the ‘Ummah’, the ‘new Islamic civilization’ — to oppose the American-led order,” Dr. Omar Mohammed told Digital.

“That is the core theme, and it directly clashes with the Abraham Accords narrative. This is an attempt to build an alliance against the Abraham Accords,” said Mohammed, director of the Antisemitism Research Initiative Program on Extremism at George Washington University.

“In his statement, he also frames American bases on Muslim soil as an occupation that must be expelled, while wrapping the whole message in religious language that casts the Iranian regime as God’s instrument.”

The counterterrorism expert noted that while the “Ummah” doctrine itself is not new — it has been used by Mojtaba’s father for years — the timing and targeted nature of this appeal represents a major escalation.

“This push centers on joining the Ummah under Iran, rather than normalizing relations with Israel under Washington,” Mohammed explained. “Same target audience, opposite framing, released just 24 hours apart, and it is a bid to assemble this new alliance.”

“The full statement was published and circulated by Iranian state media. It also aligns with his first statement as leader on March 12, when he demanded that all U.S. bases in the region be closed.”

“This was not a random offhand post,” the expert warned. “While the doctrine is old, targeting these regions the day after Trump’s pitch is what makes this new.”

This public posturing comes as Khamenei establishes his standing on the global stage, though his reclusive nature complicates traditional diplomatic processes.

“Tehran is selling itself to the region as the new sheriff of the neighborhood,” Mohammed warned.

“Saudis, Qataris and Omanis have existing channels to the Iranian state, but you cannot open a backchannel to a man no one can locate. All of this has been routed through Pezeshkian and Araghchi.”

Despite Iran’s sudden new rhetoric of “friendship”, the reality of the region has been shaped by months of Iranian aggression against its neighbors.

Tehran’s forces have actively launched attacks on Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait.

Mohammed added that Tehran aims to pull Gulf states away from Washington, while its threats continue to target both the United States and the countries that host American forces.

“Iran spent this period of conflict firing on these states — it hit Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait, the same capitals it is now inviting to join its brotherhood, and the UAE alone reported intercepting nearly 2,000 drones and hundreds of ballistic missiles since Feb. 28,” Mohammed said.

“These are the states that host U.S. forces: the Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, Al Dhafra in the UAE and Al Udeid in Qatar. You do not endure three months of Iranian attacks and then sign onto its alliance.”

Ultimately, Gulf capitals remain deeply skeptical of Tehran, Mohammed said, but they are equally watchful of American commitment to the region.

“What actually worries the Gulf isn’t Mojtaba’s invitation — it’s the deal Washington might sign,” Mohammed noted, “one that gives Iran its funds back while leaving its missiles intact, and amounts to rewarding the regime that just attacked them.”