2 June 25, 2017 Cover Story QatarSaudi transition crisis New crown prince widely welcomed in Saudi Arabia Mohammed Alkhereiji Domestically, the news was re- restructuring ever seriously pro- ported with a sense of optimism posed.” and the reshuffle had a positive ef- The plan is designed to wean the London fect on the Saudi stock exchange, Saudi economy off its traditional the largest in the Middle East. The dependency on the energy sector, n a surprise move, Saudi King Tadawul index increased more while creating jobs, stimulating Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud than 5%, an indication of trader the private sector and modernising appointed his son Prince Mo- confidence related to the appoint- Saudi Arabia. A large component of hammed bin Salman bin Ab- ment. the plan is focused on issues relat- dulaziz as heir to the Saudi The choice of Prince Mohammed ed to the kingdom’s young people, Ithrone and relieved Prince Moham- bin Salman, 31, as crown prince who are estimated to be more than med bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz of his makes him the youngest heir to half of the country’s population. positions as crown prince, deputy the throne in Saudi history and The centrepiece of Vision 2030 prime minister and interior minis- comes at a time of major changes in and the National Transformation ter. the kingdom, known traditionally Plan is to be the initial public of- The Saudi royal court announced for its measured pace in dealing fering of 1-5% interest in Saudi the reshuffle June 21 with a state- with matters related to domestic Aramco, the world’s most valuable ment that said Prince Moham- policy. Several young princes were company, valued at an estimated med bin Salman would take over appointed to high-profile govern- $2 trillion. Prince Mohammed said as deputy prime minister, remain ment positions, ushering in a new the measures would raise at least as defence minister and retain his generation of power. $100 billion a year by 2020, tripling other posts. non-oil income. The statement said the appoint- The news was Another aspect of Vision 2030 is ment was approved by 31 of the 34 reported with a sense the promotion of a kingdom-based members of the Saudi Allegiance of optimism and the entertainment industry, with the Council, which includes senior reshuffle had a goal of bringing commerce and rec- members of the royal family who reation together. In February, the determine succession in the king- positive effect on the kingdom had its first Comic Con dom. Saudi stock exhibition, which attracted more On Twitter, Saudis preferred exchange. than 20,000 visitors, despite fears method of social media interac- of a backlash from the religious es- tion, numerous hashtags related tablishment. to the new crown prince trended Since entering the political spot- In May 2016, the kingdom set heavily, with many celebrating the light in early 2015, Prince Moham- up the General Authority for En- appointment and others plead- med has generated a reputation as tertainment, tasked with putting ing allegiance, bringing traditional a hard-working, results-orientated together an entertainment indus- Saudi customs into a modern tech- reformist, unafraid of making diffi- try. One of its first endeavours was nological context. cult decisions and with a clear vi- signing a deal with the Six Flags “I pledge my allegiance to his sion of where he wants Saudi Ara- Entertainment Corporation for a Royal Highness, Prince Moham- bia to be, domestically, regionally $500 million theme park to be built med bin Salman. May God protect and internationally. outside of Riyadh. our country and preserve its glory,” One of the prince’s biggest General Authority for Entertain- wrote Saudi user Fahd Alsaqabi . achievements has been the king- ment Authority CEO Amr al-Mada- Abdullah Alshehry wrote: “May dom’s Vision 2030 economic and ni said that, by 2020, there will be God help our new crown prince to social reform plan, described by more than 450 clubs providing a Rise of younger generation. Newly appointed Crown Prince elevate our country economically, the Wall Street Journal as “the variety of cultural activities and Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz (L) kisses the hand of politically and socially for the good most far-reaching and ambitious events in Saudi Arabia, creating Prince Mohammed bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz in Mecca, Saudi of its citizens.” programme for Saudi reform and 100,000 jobs. Arabia, on June 21. (SPA) Saudi Arabia recovers its initiative-taking spirit Viewpoint here is only one blaming others and now is the time opportunity to participate in fixing coherent and more cohesive. It explanation for what for action. the needs of Saudi society without Unlike the surprised Iran in Yemen and halted has been happening in There are real problems in the the limitations of extreme con- Tehran’s evil plan to surround Saudi Arabia: The kingdom that can no longer be servatism. former Saudi Arabia. kingdom has recov- ignored. One of them is that some Slumping oil prices brought new Soviet The kingdom’s internal affairs ered its initiative-tak- Saudi citizens espouse extremist realities, such as the need for bold Union, were fixed such that there were no Ting spirit. ideologies and are working with reforms inside Saudi Arabia. Exter- longer faults that could be used to Saudi Saudi Arabia needs a solid leader terrorist organisations. Since his nally, the kingdom faced threats weaken it from the inside. It has who is capable of making bold de- investiture as deputy crown prince that required long-term solutions Arabia become clear who the country’s cisions. That person is King Salman in 2015, Prince Mohammed bin and a lot of perseverance and dared to king is and who will eventually Khairallah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. It also needs Salman has chosen to face these patience. There was no room for make the replace him. Khairallah someone who can implement realities rather than ignore them. hesitation. Qatar had to be stopped Saudi Arabia has a more compre- those decisions, which is precisely Saudi Arabia is engaged on and Iran was a continuous threat. change at hensive vision for the Gulf region the role of Crown Prince Moham- several war fronts. The interna- Tehran is trying to absorb Iraq the right and has decided to take actions med bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. tional contexts for these wars are and turn it into a base for terrorist time. commensurate with its regional Naming Mohammed bin Salman different and constantly shifting. attacks in the Arabian Gulf. Above weight. The kingdom is a major as crown prince does not mean Saudi Arabia is clearly targeted by all, the terrorist threat, both Sunni player in the Middle East and in the that former Crown Prince Moham- Iran and Qatar is following a policy and Shia, was ever present. Arabian Gulf and will assume that med bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz has aimed at weakening the Gulf Coop- Saudi Arabia had to change role without fear or hesitation. not given his utmost attention to eration Council. fundamentally and deal with the It seems that Saudi Arabia was achieving King Salman’s objectives. The kingdom had no choice but various threats and challenges. So aware of the necessity of a funda- On the contrary, Prince Moham- to react. It started by taking care of it did. mental change because it wanted med bin Nayef carried out perfectly its internal affairs. Vision 2030, an Many initiatives were taken. to avoid falling into the same trap the role assigned to him during a initiative by Crown Prince Moham- Naming Mohammed bin Salman as the former Soviet Union. The specific phase, especially in the med bin Salman is an example of a crown prince was one of them. The Soviet Union ceased to exist when domain of security, which was his programme intended to give young recent summit in Riyadh with US its leadership became too old and it forte. Saudis reasons to look forward to President Donald Trump in failed to make necessary changes. Today’s fast-changing environ- a bright future rather than become attendance was another. Even though he was very old and ment, however, requires Saudi Ara- slaves to the culture of death. The Saudi political lead- not in the best physical and mental bia to alter its approach. It should Vision 2030 gave young Saudis an ership has become more conditions, Leonid Brezhnev clung look to influence events rather to power. When he died, two old than wait to react. With more solid men replaced him. internal stability, Saudi Arabia By the time Mikhail Gorbachev must look to take on a wider role was in power, it was too late for regionally and internationally. This change. The Soviet Union disin- explains the kingdom’s decision tegrated and paid a heavy price to institute compulsory military for fearing to implement needed service for university graduates. change at the right time. As deputy crown prince, Prince The Saudi leadership was Mohammed bin Salman has been aware of the need for change working tirelessly to respond to but, unlike the former the different challenges facing Soviet Union, Saudi Arabia the kingdom. Saudi Arabia can no dared to make the change longer afford to make mistakes in at the right time. With these fast-changing circumstances, Mohammed bin Sal- especially given that Iran has man as crown prince, not abandoned its expansionist the kingdom is ready programme. Gone is the time for for leadership roles in the region and Hopeful. People pray at internationally. With more solid internal an open-air makeshift stability, Saudi Arabia must look mosque in front of a Khairallah giant Saudi Flag in Khairallah is a to take on a wider role regionally Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Lebanese writer and internationally.