* Fahad Al-Ghafili - Saudi writer

For decades, Saudi foreign policy has been characterized by almost total reliance on "soft power" closely associated with the use of political money, to buy allies and influence countries and groups. However, this policy entered the stage of clinical death with the accession of Salman bin Abdulaziz to the throne of the kingdom, after which this policy would die with his son Muhammad assuming the position of crown prince, and he would informally take over from his father until the moment the reins of power and effective rule.

The political streak in the country differed completely during the reign of Prince Muhammad, the youngest son of King Salman, as Saudi foreign policy began to take a trend that depended on military power as was evident in Yemen, and on support for outlaw militias as was the case in Libya.

This bin Salman policy has been characterized by the loss of the strategic vision, which enables it to understand and deal with the variables of the international and regional systems, due to Bin Salman's impulsive and offensive style at the same time, in addition to his lack of political experience necessary to manage a country the size and status of Saudi Arabia, in addition to his repeated inability to Striking a balance between his personal ambition and what the Kingdom's foreign policy should be.

During the era of Bin Salman, Saudi foreign policy did not abide by the determinants that it set for itself, which are "strengthening relations with the Gulf states, observing good neighborliness and non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, supporting relations with Arab and Islamic countries and common interests with them, and taking a policy of neutrality based on Strengthening cooperation relations with other countries. "

This Saudi foreign policy opened its era with the Yemen war, then imposed a blockade on Qatar, and by taking a horizontal line towards winning enemies and creating problems with and between countries. During the years of the rule of Muhammad bin Salman, and despite its few years, Saudi Arabia's relationship with many Arab, regional, and western countries deteriorated.

"
During the era of Bin Salman, Saudi foreign policy did not abide by the determinants that it set for itself, which are "strengthening relations with the Gulf states, observing good neighborliness and non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, supporting relations with Arab and Islamic countries and common interests with them, and taking a policy of neutrality based on Enhancing cooperation relations with other countries
"


Saudi Arabia cut off its relations with Qatar and Canada, and the ties with Morocco deteriorated, and the relationship with Turkey became based on caution and anxious accounts, media attacks at one time, and silence at other times. At a glance, we find that personalization and contradiction were the two controlling Saudi Arabia's relations with these countries.

The lack of experience, recklessness and impulsivity was not the only reasons that influenced the new Saudi foreign policy; there is another key factor that affected it, which is Muhammad Bin Salman’s lack of awareness of Saudi religious, geographical, regional, and international standing, or his deliberation - at least - ignoring looking at the dimensions of those Status: from the early days of his tenure as crown prince - in June 2017 - Saudi Arabia swallowed Islamist groups hostility, supported the "Deal of the Century" and counter-revolutionary forces and manipulated oil prices.

By looking at the dimensions of bin Salman's foreign policies separately, supporting the century deal, fighting Islamic groups and supporting the forces of the counter-revolution have left Saudi Arabia the leader in the Islamic and Arab world.

Moreover, the Crown Prince’s manipulation of oil prices will - if he does not back down in time to what he did - to damage his relations with America, particularly with Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, who continue to cover up his crimes and scandals, and this is not evidenced by their total disregard for directing any condemnation of him in The assassination file of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018.

As for the matter that should never be forgotten when talking about the new Saudi foreign policy, it is the role of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, who has become a major influence and influence on Mohammed bin Salman, to the extent that the UAE is today - and for the first time in its relatively short history - It has a major impact on Saudi foreign and domestic policy, and instead of Riyadh leading the issues of the region, Abu Dhabi seeks to become the main player, using Riyadh as an agent to pursue a more ambitious foreign policy.

Another key feature of the new foreign policy era is the obsession with creating alliances that lack a clear vision that maintains and succeeds. During five years, Saudi Arabia established five Arab and regional alliances, which it started with the establishment of the "Arab Alliance in Yemen" which included a number of Arab countries, and then began to gradually erode. Since the outbreak of the crisis with Qatar, so that only the remaining coalition countries, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have been fighting illegally in Yemen.

There is also the "Islamic Military Alliance to Combat Terrorism" which Saudi Arabia announced in late 2015, with the aim of combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, to include 41 Arab and Islamic countries. This alliance was born dead, as is well known, and some countries were surprised to find their name in the names of the countries participating in it.

“Arab NATO” (MESA) is the name of another failed coalition, which began as an idea put forward by President Donald Trump in 2018 with the aim of confronting Iran in the region, for Saudi Arabia to announce in 2019 that it will host a meeting that includes America, the Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Jordan in preparation for the launch of the “Alliance While Egypt did not participate in the meeting despite its invitation.

The chances of forming the "Arab NATO" seemed slim since its announcement, as the Gulf crisis resulted in a major Arab division and an unprecedented political rift in the Gulf Cooperation Council states, in addition to the difficulty of the countries of this "coalition" agreeing on files, priorities and threats of a specific nature.

The "Red Sea Alliance" is an alliance that is supposed to be closely related to the Yemen war, especially with the increasing frequency of threats in the Strait of Bab al-Mandab, the link between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. It was also assumed that this alliance would ensure coordination and consultation on this vital waterway, with eight countries being Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Djibouti, Somalia, Eritrea, Egypt, Yemen and Jordan.

"
There is no doubt that the Saudi crown prince did not help any of these alliances to achieve the desired goals from him, because the common denominator between these alliances is their lack of a clear vision, and the impossibility of their countries agreeing on common goals, in addition to the contradiction of the components of these alliances. For example, creating an alliance against Qatar, and at the same time creating an "Arab NATO" that brings Qatar to the countries of the province ?!
"


But this alliance was also marked by the contradiction of its countries and their different priorities and goals. The Egyptian leadership, for example - which is the closest ally to Saudi Arabia - does not have the same vision that Muhammad bin Salman wants to impose on the threats and dangers there.

Finally, the failure of the "quartet alliance" that includes the countries boycotting Qatar is: Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt. The alliance was established to coordinate efforts and agree on specific policies to confront Qatar, where the coalition countries agreed to set 13 requirements and linked the end of the boycott to Doha's approval of these conditions. The coalition has failed to force Qatar to agree to these conditions, despite the imposition of a blockade.

There is no doubt that the Saudi crown prince did not help any of these alliances to achieve the desired goals from him, because the common denominator between these alliances is their lack of a clear vision, and the impossibility of their countries agreeing on common goals, in addition to the contradiction of the components of these alliances. For example, creating an alliance against Qatar, and at the same time creating an "Arab NATO" that brings Qatar to the countries of the province ?!

Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman has entered Saudi Arabia’s permission in a state of political imbalance, due to his anxious policies and turbulent alliances, which caused the country to be plunged into many regional and international conflicts, and led to the slow killing of its religious status and political influence, in addition to losing a lot of its relations with Neighboring countries, regional and global.