he cozy relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia went cold last week, an abrupt shift from a foreign policy approach that had been a hallmark of the Trump administration. In a White House press briefing last Tuesday, Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced that the U.S. is recalibrating its relationship with Saudi Arabia after being asked when President Biden would be speaking with the Kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The crown prince, known as MBS, runs the country on a day-to-day basis while his father, 85-year-old King Salman, serves as Saudi Arabia’s official head of state.
In additional remarks, Press Secretary Psaki noted that President Biden will be contacting King Salman when he does make his first official call to Saudi Arabia as president. As part of recalibrating the U.S.’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, Psaki said that the Biden administration is “going back to engagement, counterpart to counterpart.” The U.S. has already utilized this approach in dealings with MBS, who recently received a call from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, since the crown prince is Saudi Arabia’s official defense minister.
Biden’s plans to change the American relationship with Saudi Arabia don’t end with giving MBS what some have referred to as “the diplomatic cold shoulder.” Earlier this month, the president announced that the U.S. would stop supporting the oil state’s offensive operations in Yemen. Additionally, the Biden administration has halted arms sales to Saudi Arabia as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The president’s actions are not surprising to those who listened to his remarks about Saudi Arabia while on the campaign train. Commenting on the Saudi government’s murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Biden said the country was a “‘pariah’ state” that needed to be punished for Khashoggi’s death. And though the U.S. has never officially blamed MBS for Khashoggi’s death, Biden has said that he believes the journalist was killed on the crown prince’s orders. The administration is declassifying a U.S. intelligence report regarding Khashoggi’s murder.
Biden’s stance on Saudi Arabia sharply contrasts that of his predecessor, who made Riyadh his first presidential visit in 2017. Trump had praised the state’s stance against Iran and satiated the country’s appetite for American-made arms. However, Biden’s approach also sets him apart from that of the Obama administration. Many of the arms sales continued under the Trump administration were started under Obama, and his administration quietly supported Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia had been attempting to ease tensions with the Biden administration in the weeks leading up to last week’s press briefing announcements. Earlier this month, Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathlou was released from prison, a move thought to indicate that Riyadh was looking to avoid conflict over human rights issues with the Biden administration. That same week, in another move thought to have been made with American allies in mind, MBS announced major legal reforms in the country, revealing that Saudi Arabia would be working to establish civil law in the country for the first time.
However, with the Biden administration releasing the intelligence report regarding the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, it seems unlikely that the president will soften his stance on Saudi Arabia any time soon. Elsewhere in the region, Biden has aspirations of rejoining a nuclear deal with Iran, an agreement which could affect his future dealings with the Saudis. It remains to be seen whether the president’s strategy in Saudi Arabia truly marks a departure from previous administrations’ approaches to foreign policy in the Middle East.
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Biden Begins Term with a Chilly Stance on Saudi Arabia
February 26, 2021
T
he cozy relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia went cold last week, an abrupt shift from a foreign policy approach that had been a hallmark of the Trump administration. In a White House press briefing last Tuesday, Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced that the U.S. is recalibrating its relationship with Saudi Arabia after being asked when President Biden would be speaking with the Kingdom’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The crown prince, known as MBS, runs the country on a day-to-day basis while his father, 85-year-old King Salman, serves as Saudi Arabia’s official head of state.
In additional remarks, Press Secretary Psaki noted that President Biden will be contacting King Salman when he does make his first official call to Saudi Arabia as president. As part of recalibrating the U.S.’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, Psaki said that the Biden administration is “going back to engagement, counterpart to counterpart.” The U.S. has already utilized this approach in dealings with MBS, who recently received a call from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, since the crown prince is Saudi Arabia’s official defense minister.
Biden’s plans to change the American relationship with Saudi Arabia don’t end with giving MBS what some have referred to as “the diplomatic cold shoulder.” Earlier this month, the president announced that the U.S. would stop supporting the oil state’s offensive operations in Yemen. Additionally, the Biden administration has halted arms sales to Saudi Arabia as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The president’s actions are not surprising to those who listened to his remarks about Saudi Arabia while on the campaign train. Commenting on the Saudi government’s murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Biden said the country was a “‘pariah’ state” that needed to be punished for Khashoggi’s death. And though the U.S. has never officially blamed MBS for Khashoggi’s death, Biden has said that he believes the journalist was killed on the crown prince’s orders. The administration is declassifying a U.S. intelligence report regarding Khashoggi’s murder.
Biden’s stance on Saudi Arabia sharply contrasts that of his predecessor, who made Riyadh his first presidential visit in 2017. Trump had praised the state’s stance against Iran and satiated the country’s appetite for American-made arms. However, Biden’s approach also sets him apart from that of the Obama administration. Many of the arms sales continued under the Trump administration were started under Obama, and his administration quietly supported Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia had been attempting to ease tensions with the Biden administration in the weeks leading up to last week’s press briefing announcements. Earlier this month, Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathlou was released from prison, a move thought to indicate that Riyadh was looking to avoid conflict over human rights issues with the Biden administration. That same week, in another move thought to have been made with American allies in mind, MBS announced major legal reforms in the country, revealing that Saudi Arabia would be working to establish civil law in the country for the first time.
However, with the Biden administration releasing the intelligence report regarding the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, it seems unlikely that the president will soften his stance on Saudi Arabia any time soon. Elsewhere in the region, Biden has aspirations of rejoining a nuclear deal with Iran, an agreement which could affect his future dealings with the Saudis. It remains to be seen whether the president’s strategy in Saudi Arabia truly marks a departure from previous administrations’ approaches to foreign policy in the Middle East.
