Don't Underestimate the Saudis

It is easy to underestimate the Saudi leadership. It was not that long ago that they were predominantly Bedouin, remote from the modern world. They wear clothing that to a Western eye hardly inspires confidence. Their riches beyond avarice permit a self-indulgence that they fully partake of.

But the Saudi monarchy is a formidable institution that should not be sold short, one with many successful innovations to its credit.

I wrote today in "Might the Saudis Blow Up Their Oil Infrastructure?" about the extraordinary Saudi plans (revealed by Gerald Posner) to create "a single-button self-destruct system" on their oil and gas infrastructure, thereby rendering it useless for decades to come. This mechanism can serve either as a deterrent or (if it fell in the hands of some of the country's more radical elements) a suicide-bomb of global proportions.

This astonishing plan fits into a tradition of the Saudi leadership thinking outside the box. Other examples include:

• The royal nomenklatura: The institution of the monarchy dates back millennia but, so far as I know, the Saudis are the first to have expanded the reach of the ruling family from a few individuals to a few thousand. Not only do royals occupy the key positions throughout the kingdom, but their numbers make them impervious to an assassination or other assault.
• Naming the country after a ruling family: As the witticism puts it, Saudi Arabia is the only family-owned business with a seat at the United Nations.
• Separate armed forces: Not wanting to be hostage to military officers, even royal ones, the monarchy relies on a national force to protect the borders, a tribal force to protect the family, and a mercenary force to guard the oil fields.
• Making Wahhabism mainstream: What a century ago ranked as a fringe outlook has become perhaps the most authoritative form of Islam thanks to the dynasty's ideological dedication, its capture of Mecca and Medina, and its ambitious use of oil wealth.
• Expanding the Wahhabi message worldwide: Through a massive effort, both legal (the "Wahhabi lobby" in the United States) and quasi-legal (Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation), and outright illegal (Al-Qaeda), the Saudis have promoted their brand of Islam to nearly all regions of the globe.
• Buying up the Washington elite: Almost any state has the funds to do it but only the Saudis have created what I have dubbed a culture of corruption – making high-ranking friends, both Democratic and Republican, through the careful yet lavish use of funds.

Non-governmental Saudis are also renowned for their imaginative prowess – think of as Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal in finance and Osama bin Laden in terrorism.

The Saudis collectively and individually should not be disdained but respected as a very worthy adversary. (May 11, 2005)

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