Gulf | Saudi Arabia
Warm Saudi hospitality awaits US president
Visit will reaffirm ties with Kngdom and Bush's personal relationship with Abdullah.
- AP
- Published: 01:22 January 15, 2008
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Riyadh: During his two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, US President George W. Bush, the scion of a family with long and deep ties to the kingdom's ruling family, will stay at the home of King Abdullah - a rare show of hospitality to a visiting dignitary.
But the warmth of the official reception - which Saudis call a reflection of solid relations between the longtime allies - does not mean Bush is popular among the Saudi people. A recent poll found that only 12 per cent of Saudis view Bush positively and one recent editorial said everything the president touches "turns to dust and ashes."
That mirrors the deep distrust many Americans still hold toward Saudi Arabia - the homeland of 15 of the 19 September 11 hijackers -even as US leaders speak favourably of Saudi Arabia's role in the region and its crackdown on Islamic extremism.
For the long-standing US-Saudi alliance, such deep contradictions are nothing new.
Worry over Iran
As one example, Bush's first trip to Saudi Arabia comes at a time of deep Saudi worry over Iran's intentions in the region. Yet Saudi officials have urged all players in the region to exercise self-restraint, and they have warned of the grave consequences for the world economy of incidents such as the recent Gulf standoff between Iran and the US.
Bush's trip to Saudi Arabia will be his first to the desert kingdom, which has the world's largest oil reserves.
His father, the first President Bush, had warm relations with many Saudis.
A rare cold front has brought clouds and rain to Riyadh for the visit. Tight security is evident: Hundreds of police cars have deployed along major roads and sharpshooters are on some rooftops. In one neighbourhood, police using loudspeakers demanded that cars be removed from some streets as two helicopters hovered overhead.
Since the Saudi-American relationship began in the 1940s, the United States became the kingdom's biggest trading partner. The Saudis became the biggest buyers of US weapons - $39billion (Dh 143.13billion) worth in the 1990s. They have also been major US creditors, buying billions in Treasury bonds, and enthusiastic investors in US business. Many Saudis sent their children to American schools.
But over the years, other issues arose as the United States became more involved in the region, especially in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where Saudis, like all Arabs, feel Washington leans unfairly to Israel's side.
Saudi-US ties were hit hard after the Sept 11 attacks when Americans questioned the kingdom's loyalty as an ally and its support for the US-led war on terror. Some asked if the kingdom's conservative society and schools bred hatred of the West.
A Saudi official said relations have 'improved tremendously' since then. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the issue's sensitivity, said Saudi's anti-terror campaign has proved its seriousness to Washington.
A senior US administration official said Bush's visit would reaffirm not just traditional ties with Saudi Arabia but also Bush's personal relationship with King Abdullah.
Recent poll: Only 12 % support Bush
A recent poll conducted for Terror Free Tomorrow, a bipartisan group whose goal is undermining world support for terrorism, found Bush viewed positively by only 12 per cent of Saudis.
That was less than half the number with a good impression of Iran's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Forty per cent held favourable opinions of the US - a lower rating than which they gave China or Iran.
Bush's unpopularity has mostly to do with his foreign policy.
- AP
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