By Reema Bandar Alsaud
...Long gone are the days (click here) when the U.S.-Saudi relationship could be defined by the outdated and reductionist “oil for security” paradigm. The world has changed and the existential dangers facing us all, including food and energy security and climate change, cannot be resolved without an effective U.S.-Saudi alliance. These priorities must guide the U.S.-Saudi partnership of the 21st century, and we view the visit of President Biden as an important moment for laying out our shared vision for how to tackle the challenges that lie ahead.
The Saudi Arabia of today is barely recognizable from how it once looked, even just five years ago. Today, we are not just a global leader in energy, but also in investment and sustainable development. Through hundreds of billions of dollars of investment in education, technology, economic diversification and green energy, we have launched a transformation agenda that is unlocking the enormous potential of our young men and women....
President Biden is making incredible progress in normalizing relations to the entire region that will bring about strong alliances with function for businesses as well. This is as much about the new burgeoning economies of the region as it is about national security.
The truth is President Biden is doing great work. He hasn't forgotten the Palestinians. He is meeting with them, too. Human rights is at the forefront of these issues. President Biden is not sacrificing human life for oil. It won't happen that way.
This is a time in history when global balance and security is vitally important now that two powers, Russia and China, have done an about face in regard to The West, which includes allies in the Middle East. It is a time of renaissance of sorts and quite frankly no one but a senior statesman with the experience Biden has could have accomplished it. His expertise spans decades of treaties, allies and enemies. He knows where the strength is and how to change insecurities into strong alliances with great economies and freedom.
14 July 2022
By Jacob Magid
US President Joe Biden, (click here) during his visit to Jeddah this weekend, will announce the successful brokering of an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Egypt that will see Riyadh take steps toward normalization with Israel, a Middle East diplomat confirmed to The Times of Israel Thursday.
The normalization measures will include Saudi Arabia opening its airspace to Israeli flights to the Far East in addition to rolling out direct flights between Israel and Saudi Arabia for Muslim pilgrims, the Middle East diplomat said, confirming reporting in the Axios news site.
The US has been seeking to finalize the transfer of the Tiran and Sanafir Red Sea islands from Cairo to Riyadh in time for Biden’s visit to Jeddah, where he will participate in the GCC+3 summit and hold a bilateral meeting with Saudi officials....
