Despite the great interest in the threat posed by the Islamic State organization to the West, perhaps the greatest threat is to Iraq’s neighbors, among them, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states. The Saudi royal family seeks to accelerate the establishment of an international coalition capable of contending effectively with the threat that Islamic State now poses to it and its allies Kuwait and Jordan, which to a great extent serve as a strategic buffer between Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Islamic State’s road to Mecca is primarily ideological, and is a struggle for the fundamental beliefs of Sunni Islam. Yet while Islamic State has created rifts in the royal Sunni camp (due to Qatar's support of Islamic extremists), it may also create mutual interests between external rival elements. From the Saudis' perspective, the threat is serious, and in this context, the possibility of ad hoc cooperation with Iran, their primary regional rival, cannot be ruled out.
