Wall Street Journal: Biden needs to improve relations with Riyadh, otherwise he will lose them to Beijing

published by the Wall Street Journal

US

President Joe Biden to work on improving relations with Riyadh and to accomplish this as soon as possible, warning that failure to do so would be in China's interest.

The article - written by Karen Elliott House, a former publisher of the newspaper with a keen interest in Saudi politics, the history of the kingdom and its social situation - says that the month of Ramadan is an opportunity for Biden to pay a visit to Riyadh "because in this month Muslims are more tolerant."

ask for forgiveness

The writer advised Biden to go to the kingdom for a short working visit to ask forgiveness for a growing list of American grievances against Saudi Arabia, which has badly damaged relations between the two parties.

She explained that Saudi discontent with America has been rising for a decade, since the era of former US President Barack Obama, who changed Washington's priorities away from protecting the Middle East and oil supplies, but the serious damage did not begin until when Biden began the attack, describing the kingdom as a "pariah state" and removed Patriot missiles that protect oil facilities from attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis, and he sought to revive the nuclear agreement with Tehran, and removed the Houthis from the list of "terrorists" and is currently seeking to remove the Iranian Revolutionary Guard from this list.

She noted that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman refused even to speak with Biden.

The writer drew attention to the fact that when Russian oil suddenly disappeared from global markets last March, Biden resorted to Riyadh, but the crown prince refused his request.

Unprecedented Saudi anger

She said that Saudi anger at the United States has not been at this high level in the past 40 years now.

It quoted a Saudi businessman as saying, "The relations between America and Saudi Arabia are dead. Obama dug the grave, and Biden put the lid on the coffin."

She added that Saudi Foreign Ministry officials have become disdain for America, and their tongue says to Biden, "You criticize us for oil production and call it dirt to satisfy climate advocates, yet when you are in trouble, you turn to us to pump more?"

They insist that the kingdom will not increase its production without the agreement of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which includes Russia, and quoted one of these officials as saying, "Currently, there is no rational commercial or financial argument for increasing production, except for the political one."

Riyadh's relations with Beijing are getting stronger

Then the writer went on to say that both countries need to put aside wounded pride and repair their relationship "which really supports global economic security," adding that Saudi Arabia's anger is dangerous.

The Kingdom's relations with China are strong and getting stronger, and it is now the largest trading partner of Saudi Arabia, and it shows great respect for the kingdom's leaders. Its foreign minister announced, at the meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation last month in Islamabad, that his country and Saudi Arabia are "good friends who support each other's basic issues."

The article pointed out that Beijing has been working hard to distance Washington and Riyadh for a long time in a vital region of the world, but it cannot protect Saudi oil fields or sea lanes that allow oil to reach global markets.

At the moment, only the United States can do that.

So it is time for Riyadh and Washington to join forces and collaborate on a new security strategy.

Ramadan presents the coverage

The writer pointed out that it seems clear from talking with many Saudi officials that if Biden wants to thaw cold relations, he should visit Riyadh, but the White House sees it difficult for him to do so without losing face, because any visit of Biden to Riyadh will be compared to the visit of the American president The former Donald Trump of Riyadh, which received an "amazing royal embrace", and the image of Biden shaking hands with Crown Prince Mohammed will be clear evidence of his admission of his mistake.

She returns to say that Ramadan offers some coverage.

Saudi officials are willing to host world leaders during the holy month, but an official visit with an honor guard and all the decorations is not possible during fasting.

Only a short business visit is possible to resolve big strategic issues, not a photo shoot and a royal welcome.

This would exclude direct comparisons with the visit of Trump or the Chinese president, who in 2019 was given a great welcome in Riyadh on his first trip after the outbreak of the epidemic outside China.

And the writer concluded her article that Saudi Arabia has been a major ally of America for nearly 80 years, and if Biden wants to mend the relationship, it is wise to do so sooner rather than later, adding, “His pride may be dealt a short-term blow, but the price that American interests bear is isolation and closer Saudi Arabia.” from China".