Riyadh becomes burden to US: Saudi analyst
An expert of US-Saudi relations in Washington says the United States has played the role of a "bodyguard" for Saudi Arabia but Riyadh has become a “burden” to America.
In an article published in The New York Times on January 5, Ali al-Ahmed wrote that the US has long played the role of a "bodyguard" for Saudi Arabia, helping it to intimidate its regional rivals, including Iran.
According to al-Ahmed, an expert on Saudi and Persian Gulf political affairs, Riyadh is not a friend of Washington, but rather a burden to it. Saudi Arabia helped the Americans on several occasions and after that received everything it wanted.
"America's needs in the Middle East are evolving from the supply of crude oil to combating violent extremism and ensuring genuine regional stability. The Saudis aren't meeting or supporting these needs, which makes them a burden, not a friend," the expert noted.
The author, referring to Saudi Arabia’s role in the fight against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, said, "After Saudi billions backed thousands of Saudi nationals to fight the Red Army in Afghanistan, the US was so grateful it gave Saudi Arabia virtually everything it asked for.”
Since late 1970s, America has fought several wars in the Middle East while "the Saudis watched from the bleachers, cheering but extending nothing more than a large check," the expert wrote.
Al-Ahmed concluded that Washington should stop unconditional supporting of Riyadh, because such a close alliance with the country that supports terrorism and demands US intervention in other countries in the Middle East region seriously damages American interests.
"In recent years, the Saudis have become a burden to the U.S. with their erratic behavior and at times child-like tantrums, demanding American intervention on their behalf in Syria, Iraq and Egypt," the author wrote.
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