A Turkish newspaper published a report saying that the defeat of two ambitious Arab crown princes in forming an anti-Iranian bloc and trying to break out of isolation in the Yemeni crisis is one of the reasons for Riyadh’s desire to defuse tensions with Tehran.
“We are seeking to have good relations with Iran,” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Saudi television this week. “We are working with our partners in the region to overcome our differences with Iran.” Only four years ago, the notorious royal sang a different tune, claiming dialogue with Iran was impossible. “How do you have a dialogue with a regime built on an extremist ideology?” he said, pledging that Saudi Arabia would take the battle to Iranian territory.
What changed to make this 180-degree shift possible?
One factor looms larger than all others: increasing signs that the United States is serious about shifting its focus away from the Middle East. It’s not so much anything Washington has done but rather what Washington has stopped doing—namely, reassuring its security partners in the region that it will continue to support them unconditionally, no matter what reckless conduct they engage in. Washington’s turn away from entangling itself in the quarrels and stratagems of its Middle Eastern partners has compelled the region’s powers to explore their own diplomacy. Contrary to the doomsday predictions of Washington’s foreign-policy establishment, chaos has not been unleashed by the United States’ pending military withdrawals from the region. Instead, regional diplomacy has broken out.
The report further said:
For nearly seven years, Yemen has been witnessing an ongoing war between the pro-government forces backed by a Saudi-led Arab military coalition and the Iran-backed Houthis, who have controlled provinces, including the capital, Sanaa, since September 2014.
In response to a question whether Washington has turned its back on Riyadh, he replied that “the margin of disagreement is very natural … and there is a Saudi consensus with the administration of US President Joe Biden by 90%.”
He stated that “the margin of disagreement may increase or decrease with the American administration.”
In response to the presence of American pressure on Riyadh, bin Salman affirmed that the kingdom “rejects any interference in its internal affairs,” without specifying whether or not there is any pressure.
Bin Salman answered a question about the Saudi campaign against extremism, saying “extremism in everything is not permissible.”
On a question about “imprisoning a group of these [extremists]”, he said that Saudi Arabia “was the main target for extremist projects because it is the destination of Muslims.”
“During the period from the fifties to the seventies of the last century, there were Arabism and socialist projects that gave extremist groups an opportunity to reach various positions in the country that resulted in unpleasant consequences,” he said without elaborating.
He continued: “Today we cannot grow and not attract capital and tourism with the existence of an extremist ideology in Saudi Arabia, and therefore this extremist project must be eradicated, … and any person adopts extremism, it is a crime that is legally pursued.”
In September 2017, the Saudi authorities arrested prominent preachers and Islamic activists in the country, most notably Salman al-Ouda, Awad al-Qarni and Ali al-Omari, on charges of “terrorism and conspiracy against the state,” amid demands from international and Islamic personalities and organizations for their release.
