Page 55 - 15MAR2020E

foreign affairs

the distribution of Saudi Arabia’s wealth. Houthi armed movement being on the just a few weeks (it began four years
This is one of the two main pillars which other along with their foreign supporters after the then dictator Ali Abdullah
have been providing the much-needed and allies. The Houthi rebels, being Shias, Saleh was forced to hand over power
strength to the Saudi dynasty. have been getting considerable sup- to his deputy, Abdrabbuh Mansur
port from Iran with its allies like Russia Hadi in 2011, in the wake of the Arab
he other pillar was a close providing them the arms supplies. The Spring), refuses to come to an end. It
alliance with the Wahabi reli- Saudis, for whom money has not been a has severely impacted the economy of
gious establishment, which problem, have been openly helped by the Saudi Arabia itself, Riyadh cannot get
T has not feeling comfortable US and its Western allies like the UK and out of it without it coming to an end.
with the measures MBS has taken after France with sufficient arms supplies to And it was the MBS idea for the Saudis
his elevation as the Crown Prince. The eliminate the Houthi rebellion. to jump into the Yemeni war theatre,
opening of cinema halls and allowing However, the war, expected to last now a difficult quagmire from where it
music concerts and casinos have not is not easy to come out unharmed.
gone down well with the Wahabi The Yemen war plus the hostilities
school of thought, though his moderniz- Though MBS is already in Syria have weakened the economic
ing efforts have been applauded in base of Saudi Arabia, being governed
the West. the de facto king by MBS as the de facto king. He has
Two other factors have also severely of his country, he taken a number of measures to pro-
dented his reputation: Riyadh plunging vide a new impetus to the country’s
into the war in Yemen and the killing of lacks some crucial economy but in vain.
well-known journalist Jamal Khashoggi qualifications which his The kingdom’s economic woes are
in a Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, yet to subside when it has been hit by
Turkey. The war in Yemen, where the predecessors, including a price war on the oil front. To ensure
Saudis are backing the incumbent ruler that the oil war goes in favour of the
against the Houthi rebels, has consumed his father, possessed. Saudis, Riyadh has declared to drasti-
considerable resources of the kingdom They did not lack cally reduce the prices of its petroleum
— $5 billion-$6 billion a month. products to give a major jolt to its main
So far, no side can claim to be the gain- the qualification of competitor, Russia. But both countries
er in the Yemen war that began in March legitimacy and trust of have been the sufferers so far though
2015 with the Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi- they have sufficient reserves in terms
led government on the one side and the royal family members of the dollar to withstand the financial
pressure being caused on their
economy.
The problem with Saudi
Arabia is that sustained low
oil prices may hit adversely
the government’s spending
on projects that are part of the
MBS drive to diversify the Saudi
economy to boost the morale of
the Saudi masses. Though the oil
price crisis has been primarily
caused by the coronavirus threat,
it is bound to lead to a situation
in which the would-be king will
have a lot of explaining to do.
The oil economy-related issue is,
in any case, going to add to the
woes of MBS when he is prepar-
ing to finally ascend to the Saudi
throne as, perhaps, the youngest
ruler of the most powerful Arab
nation.
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