Posted on 01/27/2015 2:50:52 PM PST by alexmark1917
Three Words Explain Obama’s Visit To Saudi Arabia: Stability Is King
Almost 70 years ago, a fading President Franklin Roosevelt, returning from Yalta, held a historic meeting on board a U.S. destroyer with King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia.
On Tuesday, President Barack Obama met with King Salman, one of Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud’s sons. Much has changed in the U.S.-Saudi relationship. But the elements that drove FDR and all of his successors to maintain and strengthen those ties—oil and regional stability–are still in place.
The United States and Saudi Arabia never shared common values. The arrest and flogging of the liberal Saudi blogger Raif Badawi attest to that. But they do share common interests: the adhesive that can bind nations together.
Yet all is not well in the House of Saud’s view of its traditional ally. The Saudis are unhappy with the Obama administration’s nuclear diplomacy with Iran; they have not forgiven Washington for what they regard as Mr. Obama’s willingness to help ease Egypt’s longtime leader Hosni Mubarak from power; and they are white-hot angry at the U.S. refusal to take on–and out—Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Iran’s key ally who daily slaughters their fellow Sunnis.
Despite all this, in the wake of King Abdullah’s passing last week, the U.S.-Saudi relationship is on an upswing. President Obama’s decision to cut short his trip to India and meet with the new Saudi king underscores that, for all its anomalies and contradictions, the U.S.-Saudi relationship is too big to fail. Here are three reasons why.
Crude diplomacy: The U.S. may be weaning itself off of Arab hydrocarbons, but the rest of the world isn’t. And disruption in any given oil-producing country can roil oil and financial markets worldwide, including here at home. The Saudis remain the key swing producer; and the U.S. must not only remain close to the Saudis but–in the mold of George H.W. Bush’s decision to push Saddam Hussein‘s forces out of Kuwait–a putative protector too.
Jihadis on the march: Terror threats are the only thing that possibly trumps oil when it comes to U.S. interests. And the rise of Islamic State; al-Qaeda’s resurgence in the Arabian peninsula; and the growing terror sanctuaries in Yemen, Iraq, and Syria mean that the U.S. needs local allies. Among the Arabs, the Saudis are the most stable and reliable in the region. They have excellent intel, financial resources, and counter-terrorism capacities. Bordering Yemen is both a liability and an advantage–and gives the Saudis rare access at a critical time: The U.S. needs Sunni allies in its coalition to counter ISIS.
Kings forever: It’s a cruel irony that in the wake of the Arab spring of 2011, in which the old order in many countries was boldly overturned in the name of freedom and even democracy, only authoritarian kings, sheiks, and emirs have survived. Leaders of Persian Gulf states have money to coopt and preempt radicalism and Islamic legitimacy to secure their rule; and they are less cruel and extractive than Saddam Hussein, the Assads,Moammar Gaddhafi, Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, or Hosni Mubarak ever were. And in the lands of the Arabs, the Saudis in particular offer a rare stability that the U.S. can’t afford to ignore: We may support an Arab spring in Egypt. But we don’t want one in Saudi Arabia. Great powers can afford to be inconsistent and hypocritical.
The bells of change may ultimately toll for the kings of the Middle East. But not today. And that’s why Barack Obama, the young U.S. president who wanted to be on the right side of history and democratic change, finds himself making nice to the aging undemocratic son of the king who captivated FDR. Mr. Obama’s trope of hope and change aside, in the Middle East, stability is rare–and it is king, too.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2015/01/27/obama-in-saudi-arabia-stability-is-king/
Obama holds talks with King Salman in Riyadh
President Barack Obama arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday at the head of a heavyweight delegation including senior U.S. officials to meet the new Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz.
King Salman greeted Obama, who was accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama, soon after Air Force One touched down at King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
Obama, who arrived after cutting short a trip to India, was greeted by a military honor guard and later a military band played the national anthems of the two countries, which have enjoyed more than 80 years of bi-lateral relations.
Saudi reception
King Salman headed a large reception of senior Saudi officials welcoming Obama, who has visited the Saudi kingdom as U.S. president on two previous occasions.
Obama was received by Saudi Crown Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Crown Prince and Interior Minister Mohammad bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Riyadh Province Governor Prince Turki bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Royal Protocol President Mohammad bin Abdulrahman Al-Tubaishi, Saudi Ambassador to the United Sates Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir and U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Joseph Westphal.
Later, at Erga Palace in Riyadh, the U.S. and Saudi delegations chatted as they sat on chairs placed around the walls of a large room.
Nature of visit
Ben Rhodes, the U.S. deputy National Security advisor, told reporters the trip to Riyadh was an “opportunity to both pay respects to the legacy of King Abdullah, who was a close partner with the United States and also to touch base on some of the issues where we’re working together with the Saudis.”
He said the issues included the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the situation in Yemen, the Iranian nuclear negotiations and the broader U.S.-Saudi relationship, according to a White House statement.
Rhodes said his understanding was that the majority of the delegation flew from the U.S. to Ramstein in Germany, where they met up with Secretary of State John Kerry to travel to Riyadh.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/01/27/U-S-delegation-Saudi-King-Salman.html
Now More Than Ever, U.S.-Saudi Commercial Ties Matter
U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Saudi Arabia is important for reasons that are unlikely to make news headlines. Media coverage will focus on shared U.S.-Saudi security concerns, such as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants and recent developments in Yemen, as well as key differences on issues such as the Iran nuclear negotiations. However, the real story shaping U.S.-Saudi relations will be whether the delegation is able to lay the groundwork for continuity in trade and investment between the two countries.
Saudi Arabia is historically among the most lucrative investment destinations for American multinational companies (MNCs) operating in the Middle East. MNCs count on Saudi sales to make up a large percentage of total sales in the Middle East and Africa. In FSG’s Frontier Market Sentiment Index, which measures corporate sentiment towards frontier markets, Saudi Arabia is one of the six most tracked countries in the world.
There are good reasons for the strong corporate focus on the Saudi market. The economy is nearly double the size of the UAE, which is the next largest market in the Middle East. Saudi public spending is two and a half times higher than any other market in the Middle East and North Africa and GDP per capita is in the top five among emerging markets globally. Critically, low debt levels and foreign exchange reserves exceeding U.S.$730 billion insulate the economy from significant damage despite the 50 percent drop in oil prices since June 2014. As a result, senior executives across sectors will rely on Saudi Arabia in 2015 and beyond.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2015/01/27/Strengthening-U-S-Saudi-commercial-ties-in-uncertain-times-.html
U.S.-Saudi relations under King Salman: What to expect next?
U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit with a high-ranking American delegation to Riyadh shouldn’t only be read as a part of the protocol necessary in the passing from one King to another.
One should note that the U.S. delegation consisted of 30 of America’s political elite, with the bulk of them representing Washington’s foreign policy and national security bureaucracy of the last two decades.
Joining the president were his Republican opponent from 2008, Senator John McCain of Arizona, and several veterans of Republican administrations, including two former secretaries of state, James A. Baker III and Condoleezza Rice, and two former national security advisers, Brent Scowcroft and Stephen J. Hadley.
Also accompanying Obama in Riyadh were senior figures from his own administration, including Secretary of State John Kerry; John O. Brennan, the director of the CIA; and Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, the head of the United States Central Command.
Several Democratic members of Congress were part of the delegation, including Senator Mark Warner of Virginia and Representatives Nancy Pelosi and Ami Bera of California and Eliot L. Engel and Joseph Crowley of New York. Most important may be former Secretary of State Jim Baker who the Saudi’s deeply respect.
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2015/01/27/U-S-Saudi-relations-under-King-Salman-What-to-expect-next-.html
Read more at http://investmentwatchblog.com/three-words-explain-obamas-visit-to-saudi-arabia-stability-is-king-now-more-than-ever-u-s-saudi-commercial-ties-matter/#AoEG6vVO2dfSTJcS.99
Gee and I thought he was just hoping for another big bling gold chain.
Gooooood Blogger.
The House of Saud paid for B-HO’s time at Harvard. They own him.
Interesting that you only post from a single source:
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/by:alexmark1917/index?tab=articles
Why is that?
Three words, eh, muslime, traitor, blackmail.
It is the old admonitions all over again I.E. know your enemies and your friends. The listing of persons attending from the US for certain shows where and why the US is no longer the US of Tom Jefferson who told the sheiks to keep their people home. President Jefferson must never of realized that at some day and by some/many US personnel would be giving high homage to the people he never trusted.
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