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The West's reliance on Saudi Arabia is ill-judged

By Valerie Yule - posted Friday, 18 March 2016


There are many obvious shared interests of Saudi Arabia and USA. It has recently helped keep oil prices down, which helps to weaken the economies of Russia and Iran. Saudi Arabia and the U.S. agree that Bashar al-Assad not continue as president of Syria; and they both support President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt - the U.S. despite Sisi's autocratic tendencies, Saudi Arabia because of them. Saudis support and facilitate the American military presence in the Middle East. U.S. relies heavily on Saudi money to support Syrian rebels.

Saudi Arabia's security depends on the United States. This gives the USA leverage in the kingdom it should be ready to use. Saudi Arabia may yet be persuaded to end encouragement of a fundamentalist form of Islam that, in the end, poses a threat to the kingdom itself; to allow for greater political and religious freedom inside the kingdom; to heal the growing Sunni-Shiite breach; and to exercise its regional power more wisely. But Saudi Arabia is no longer a reliable ally for the United States.

Saudi Arabia has supported Wahhabi madrasas in poor countries in Africa and Asia, exporting extremism and intolerance. Saudi Arabia also exports instability with its brutal war in Yemen, intended to check what it sees as Iranian influence. Saudi airstrikes and the blockading of ports has been devastating. Eighty per cent of Yemenis now need assistance.

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Saudi Arabia is today in world headlines for being in trouble. Its population is increasing rapidly. In 1995 it was under 19 million; in 2015 it was over 27 million. A quarter of the population is under the age of 25. Sustaining it will become a crisis, along with other countries of the Middle East.

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About the Author

Valerie Yule is a writer and researcher on imagination, literacy and social issues.

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