Better the Saudis We Know
A token of Saudi resentment was on display last week when Mr. Obama was received by the governor of Riyadh rather than by the king — a rare snub for a sitting American president. As the visit concluded, American officials asserted that the meeting had “cleared the air,” but the signs of a rift that predates the Obama presidency were fully apparent.
.. Yet there is truth to the Saudis’ sense that the Obama administration has attenuated the alliance. The Saudis were shocked when America withdrew its forces from Iraq in 2010 and left Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a pro-Iranian Shiite, in charge as prime minister. This abandoned Iraq’s Sunnis to the sectarian Mr. Maliki’s mercy, which indirectly abetted the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq.
.. King Salman and his son Mohammed, who is deputy crown prince and minister of defense, are the most hawkish and ambitious rulers in modern Saudi history.
.. Saudi Arabia will not be able to militarily dominate Iran: It has neither the manpower and the expertise nor the broad network of proxy forces that the Iranians have.