Efraim Inbar: The rise of a more aggressive Iran – a direct consequence of the US retreat – may bring about greater tacit cooperation among Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. The Kurds are a thorn in Turkey’s side. Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan are very fearful of growing Iranian influence. Russia is fully alive to the potential for a reassertion of a Russian role in the region in the wake of an American retreat. It already has signed exploration contracts with the Assad regime with regard to the recent gas discoveries in the Levant basin. Russia's efforts on Assad's behalf thus directly serve the interests of the Iranian regime because Damascus is a linchpin to its proxy, the Hezbollah in Lebanon.