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United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, recently met with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) to discuss stabilizing the Middle East. MBS remains a controversial figure in the U.S., due to his connection with the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and allegations of other human rights abuses.
Straight Arrow News contributor Peter Zeihan explains how, despite the crown prince’s questionable reputation, the U.S. needs to improve its relations with the Kingdom, and Jake Sullivan is the guy for the job.
An excerpt from Peter’s Aug. 2 “Zeihan on Geopolitics” newsletter:
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan went to Saudi Arabia to lay down the framework for a new set of relations. As of late, relations have been less than ideal.
The National Security Advisor is really the manager of American foreign policy – even though the State Department gets all the credit. So seeing the hyper-competent Jake Sullivan leading the charge here is indicative of just how critical this is.
Biden’s push to Greentech has caused riffs in the relationship, but the other side has played a role too. MBS, the crown prince, is – for lack of a better term – an ass. And as anyone who’s dealt with someone like that knows, you have to put up with a lot of crap.
However, with Russia and China making moves against the US, Biden is starting to realize that Saudi Arabia is a very useful partner to have.
