Let's get to know the Saudis
Lee Hamilton

The U.S.-Saudi Arabian relationship has long been important, sensitive and opaque. Over the last few months, it has also been tested by a newly assertive Saudi Arabia.

A simple deal has driven U.S.-Saudi relations for decades: The Saudis provide access to affordable oil; the United States provides security for the Saudi royal family. Yet tensions intrude upon this marriage of convenience. Americans have questioned Saudi Arabia's autocratic government, opposition to Israel and financial support for radical Islam. The Saudis have chafed at our lectures on democracy, support for Israel and the war in Iraq.

Lately, Saudi King Abdullah has shown a surprising willingness to go his own way. The Saudis brokered a cease-fire between Palestinian factions that the U.S. saw as too favorable to Hamas, a group we have targeted for isolation. King Abdullah in turn called for an end to the isolation of Hamas. He also renewed a 2002 Saudi initiative for an Israeli-Palestinian peace based on Arab recognition of Israel in return for a Palestinian state based on Israel's 1967 borders.

King Abdullah has been even more direct in challenging the United States. Speaking to a conference of the Arab League, he declared: "In the beloved Iraq, the bloodshed is continuing under an illegal foreign occupation and detestable sectarianism." In the Middle East, where opposition to America is at unprecedented levels, these moves went over well.

The irony is that the United States has pressed the Saudis to be more assertive. For months, Bush administration officials have spoken of a realignment in the Middle East in which "moderate Arab states" like Saudi Arabia worry more about a rising Iran than Israel. Yet while the Saudis are very concerned about Iran's growing influence and nuclear program, King Abdullah has hosted talks with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and spoken out against the prospect of a U.S. attack on Iran.

The reality is that the Saudis see many things differently from the Bush administration. They don't want the Palestinians to descend into civil war, but they do see Hamas as a legitimate player in Palestinian politics. They don't want us to pull out of Iraq immediately, but they do want us to do more to protect Sunni Arabs from Shiite militias. They don't want a nuclear Iran next door, but they are open to engagement with Iran and groups like Hezbollah. The Saudis want to maintain close ties with the U.S. and certainly want our military presence to provide stability in the region, but they also appear to be looking for other ways to advance their interests.

In the United States, we should be doing our own re-evaluation. We do have a significant interest in the stability of the Saudi kingdom, principally because its oil is enormously important to the health of our economy. But Saudi Arabia is not a moderate Arab state -- it is an autocracy. While it has cooperated in the war on terror, it denies its people political and economic opportunity. It is no coincidence that 15 of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were Saudis angry at their government, angry at the United States and ensnared by radical Islam. Yet while we press the Saudis to cooperate on counter-terrorism, we do not press them to liberalize their political and economic system.

We should not push for dramatic and potentially destabilizing change, nor should we reduce our commitment to the security of Saudi Arabia. But we should press for pragmatic reform so that the seeds of civil society, greater economic equality and political participation have the opportunity to grow. We should also pursue an energy policy that reduces our dependence on foreign oil and gas. Here, too, we cannot expect miracles. But we can move boldly in the direction of energy independence. Over time, these threads can complement our commitment to stability and lead to a more mature relationship.

At a time when America's standing in the Middle East is shaken, it is not surprising that the Saudis are defining their interests as they see them, not as we do. We should use this occasion to better understand Saudi concerns, and to move toward a relationship that is deeper and more sustainable than the simple deal that has defined U.S.-Saudi relations all these years.

About Lee Hamilton, President and Director, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

What is the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars?
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