Obama Seeks to Calm Saudis as Paths Split

NY TIMES ^ | 3/27/14 | David K Kirkpatrick

[SoFloFreeper]

Over seven decades, the United States and Saudi Arabia forged a strategic alliance that became a linchpin of the regional order: a liberal democracy and an ultraconservative monarchy united by shared interests in the stability of the Middle East and the continued flow of oil.

But with President Obama arriving in Riyadh on Friday, the rulers of Saudi Arabia say they feel increasingly compelled to go their own way, pursuing starkly different strategies from Washington in dealing with Iran, Syria, Egypt and the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in the region.

“Their view of Mr. Obama is that his entire understanding is wrong,” said Mustafa Alani, an analyst at the Geneva-based Gulf Research Center who is close to the Saudi monarchy. “The trust in him is not very high, so he will not have an easy ride, and a lot of hard questions will be put on the table.”

[SJackson]

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[Eleutheria5]

“his entire understanding is wrong...the trust in him is not very high...he will not have an easy ride...”

Is that the best they can do, ask him hard questions and let him ride them but not make it an easy ride? If his entire understanding is wrong, and the trust is not very high, you humor him and then do whatever you originally planned to do; i.e., something based on a true understanding, dealing with people you can trust more than him.