Updated January 15, 2019
Saudi Arabia
Change, Continuity, and Controversy
Figure 1. Saudi Arabia
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ruled by the Al Saud family
since its founding in 1932, wields significant global
influence through its administration of the birthplace of the
Islamic faith and by virtue of its large oil reserves. Recent
Saudi leadership changes and foreign policy decisions are
fueling calls from some U.S. leaders for a reassessment of
longstanding bilateral ties. The Al Saud have sought
protection, advice, technology, and armaments from the
United States, along with support in developing their
country’s natural and human resources and in facing
national security threats. U.S. leaders have valued Saudi
cooperation in security and counterterrorism matters and
have sought to preserve the secure, apolitical flow of the
kingdom’s energy resources and capital to global markets.
The Trump Administration seeks to strengthen U.S.-Saudi
ties as the kingdom implements new domestic and foreign
policy initiatives, while some in Congress call for change.
Leadership and Public Confidence
Source: CRS, using ESRI, and U.S. State Department data.
King Salman bin Abd al Aziz Al Saud (age 83) assumed the
Vision 2030 and Social Change
throne in 2015 after the death of his half-brother, the late
The centerpiece of Saudi leaders’ domestic agenda is the
King Abdullah bin Abd al Aziz. King Salman since has
altered the responsibilities and relative power of leading
Vision 2030 initiative, which seeks to transform the
kingdom’s economy by diversifying the government’s
members of the next generation of the Al Saud family, the
grandsons of the kingdom’s founder. King Salman’s son,
sources of revenue and reducing longstanding oil export
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (age 33), is now the
dependence by promoting investment and private sector
growth. Plans for an initial public offering of shares in state
central figure in Saudi policymaking, having asserted
oil company Saudi Aramco have been delayed to 2021.
control over key national security forces, sidelined potential
Authorities have reduced some consumer and industrial
rivals, and begun implementing ambitious policy changes.
subsidies and introduced a value-added tax. Amid some
In parallel, channels for expressing dissent within the
domestic criticism, authorities also have offered citizens
kingdom appear to have narrowed considerably. Since
relief payments, salary increases, and tax exemptions.
2017, security forces have detained dozens of activists,
Economic transformation has driven social change in the
Islamist figures, and journalists. Prosecutors have detained
kingdom since the early 20th century, and the Vision 2030
and/or pursued various charges against some well-known
figures, including prominent clerics, human rights
initiative is being accompanied by significant changes in
advocates, and women’s r
the state’s approach to some sensitive social matters.
ights campaigners. In late 2017,
Authorities reversed the kingdom’s longstanding ban on
authorities also imprisoned dozens of wealthy individuals
(and potential family rivals of the crown prince) for months
women driving in June 2018, in part to expand women’s
participation in the workforce. Parallel changes have
in the Ritz Carlton hotel in Riyadh as part of a nominal
created more public space for women in some social and
anticorruption campaign. Most of this latter group of
detainees were released after reaching undisclosed financial
cultural events, but most male guardianship rules restricting
women’s activities remain in place. Some Saudis welcome
settlement arrangements, amid accounts of abuse.
changes made to date and call for more, while others
Many Saudis and outside observers have expressed surprise
express opposition or concern about their potential effects
about the scope and rapidity of post-2015 developments and
on religious and social values.
continue to speculate about their potential implications.
Saudi Nuclear Plans
Saudi decision-making had long appeared to be relatively
risk-averse and rooted in rulers’ concerns for maintaining
In conjunction with efforts to recast the role of energy
resources in the kingdom’s economy, Saudi leaders also
consensus among different constituencies, including
seek to develop domestic civilian nuclear power
factions of the royal family, business elites, and
conservative religious figures. Crown Prince Mohammed
infrastructure and have solicited bids for the construction of
bin Salman’s bolder and more centralized leadership has
two nuclear power reactors. The Trump Administration
expedited consideration of required regulatory approvals for
challenged each of these interest groups, and is leading
U.S. firms to provide marketing information to Saudi
Saudis and outsiders alike to reexamine their assumptions.
officials, and may propose a bilateral nuclear cooperation
https://crsreports.congress.gov
Saudi Arabia
agreement for the 116th Congress to consider. Saudi
shortages of food and goods. The 115th Congress debated
officials have not forsworn uranium enrichment and have
proposals to restrict, end, or exercise oversight over U.S.
stated their intent to use and develop domestic capabilities.
military aid to Saudi operations, and, amid congressional
Saudi nuclear facilities would be subject to International
scrutiny, President Trump ended U.S. refueling support.
Atomic Energy Agency safeguards.
Intra-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Tensions
Combatting Terrorism and Extremism
Saudi Arabia has led an effort to isolate the government of
The U.S. government describes U.S.-Saudi cooperation on
Qatar internationally since mid-2017, citing concerns about
counterterrorism as robust and credits Saudi officials with
reported Qatari support for terrorism and aspects of Qatar’s
reducing the financing of terrorism by Saudi nationals and
independent foreign policy approach. Various GCC-based
with contributing to global efforts to undermine terrorist
figures describe close Qatari ties with regional Islamist
propaganda. The Islamic State group has been highly
actors, including the Muslim Brotherhood, as problematic.
critical of Saudi authorities and religious officials, and U.S.
The Trump Administration favors negotiation and
threat assessments judge that the Islamic State and Al
compromise by parties to the ongoing intra-GCC dispute.
Qaeda pose continuing risks to the kingdom’s security. The
Saudi government’s relationship with conservative religious
Israeli-Palestinian Affairs
Saudi Arabia is a leader among Arab states in supporting
figures is evolving, with the state promoting potentially
key Palestinian demands, but in recent years the Saudis
controversial social policy changes while enlisting religious
have strengthened informal ties with Israel because of the
leaders to counteract extremist messages. In December
two countries’ shared interest in countering Iran. In January
2017, King Salman said “there is no place among us for an
2018, King Salman reiterated the kingdom’s “firm position
extremist who sees moderation as degeneration.”
on the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of the
Palestinian people to establish their independent state with
“We will not spend the next 30 years of our lives dealing
Jerusalem as its capital and on continuing efforts to find a
with destructive ideas. We will destroy them today.”
just and lasting solution to the Palestinian cause in
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, October 2017
accordance with relevant international resolutions.”
Saudi Foreign Policy
Relations with China and Russia
The King and Crown Prince have actively pursued several
Growing Saudi energy exports to China have underwritten
initiatives across the Middle East since 2015, challenging
new Sino-Saudi economic and diplomatic ties, and bilateral
Iran, reopening dialogue with Iraq, seeking to isolate Qatar,
meetings of senior officials are often followed by
and fighting an ongoing war in Yemen. New Saudi activism
announcements of new cooperation initiatives. Saudi
in regional affairs has created new questions for Congress
leaders also have opened substantive dialogue and
to consider, including with regard to defense cooperation.
cooperation with Russia, encompassing coordination on oil
production decisions to bolster global oil prices, discussion
Iran, Iraq, and the Levant
of arms sales, and talks on Syria and other regional issues.
Saudi policies toward Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon continue to
reflect the kingdom’s overarching concerns about Iran and
Outlook for Saudi-U.S. Relations
the Iranian government’s ties to state and non-state actors in
Successive U.S. Administrations have referred to the Saudi
these countries. Saudi authorities back the U.N. Security
government as an important strategic partner, and U.S. arms
Council’s call for a negotiated settlement to the conflict in
sales and related security cooperation programs have
Syria and would prefer that such a settlement result in a
continued with congressional oversight amid some
transition away from the Iran-aligned government of Bashar
congressional opposition. The October 2018 murder of
al Asad. Saudi efforts to consolidate and align the views of
Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi officials in the
various Syrian opposition actors and armed groups have
Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, exacerbated concerns
borne some fruit, but divisions among Syrian factions
among some in Congress about Saudi leaders and the pace,
persist. U.S. officials have praised Saudi efforts to
scope, and direction of recent changes in the kingdom’s
strengthen ties with Iraq’s government, including the
policies. Saudi officials state that they value their country’s
reopening of border crossings between the two countries.
historically close relationship with the United States.
Conflict in Yemen
During 2019, the 116th Congress may review U.S.-Saudi
Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition of mostly Arab
cooperation in the context of Members’ views and concerns
states since March 2015 in efforts to reinstate the
about regional security, combatting extremism, and human
government of Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour
rights. Congress may debate proposals related to U.S.
Hadi, who was ousted in a 2014-2015 offensive by the
support to Saudi military operations in Yemen, including
Zaydi Shia Houthi movement of northern Yemen. Iranian
proposals to direct the Trump Administration to withdraw
material and advisory support to the Houthi war effort—
U.S. forces from non-counterterrorism missions.
including the provision of ballistic missiles that have been
For more information, see CRS Report RL33533, Saudi
fired into Saudi Arabia—has amplified Saudi leaders’
Arabia: Background and U.S. Relations.
anxieties and concerns. The Trump Administration lifted
some limits on U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia that the
Christopher M. Blanchard, Specialist in Middle Eastern
Obama Administration had imposed to protest airstrikes
Affairs
that resulted in civilian casualties. The United Nations
considers Yemen to be the world’s worst humanitarian
IF10822
crisis and cites Houthi malfeasance and Saudi coalition-
enforced limits on air and sea access as contributing to
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Saudi Arabia
Disclaimer
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https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF10822 · VERSION 4 · UPDATED