Saudi Arabia - Ambassador Ford Fraker

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U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ford M. Fraker (R) hosting President Bush and Saudi business people in Riyadh in January 2008. (Photo: White House) SUSRIS EXCLUSIVE

Moving in the Right Direction
A Conversation with Ambassador Ford Fraker
Part 3

Editor's Note:

Today we offer for your consideration the last of our three part interview with United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ford M. Fraker. In this conversation he provides an update on the military component of the relationship, the partnership in fighting terrorism, reforms in the Kingdom and insights into regional challenges.

Part 1 provided his insights on the current state of the relationship between America and the Kingdom. In part 2 he talked about doing business with and in the Kingdom and his efforts to unknot the visa issue that was the "single biggest impediment to the relationship going forward." [Links below]

Ambassador Fraker was interviewed during the Arab-US Policymakers Conference in Washington, D.C. on October 31, 2008. SUSRIS wishes to thank him for taking the time to share his insights and perspectives with us and you.

SUSRIS EXCLUSIVE

Moving in the Right Direction:
A Conversation with Ambassador Ford Fraker
Part 3

MIL2MIL

SUSRIS: Let�s talk about the military to military ties between Saudi Arabia and the United States. Little has been reported on this important part of the relationship since the 2003 when the regime change in Iraq resulted in the end of the Operational Southern Watch air operations from Prince Sultan Air Base and the departure of several thousand U.S. military personnel. How would you describe the current level of interaction between the militaries and the health of that component of the relationship?

FRAKER: Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world where the U.S. government has two separate training missions each one run by a general. So our relationships with MODA, the Ministry of Defense and Aviation, and the Saudi Arabian National Guard are very strong and getting stronger.

Military contracts on both sides are significant. There�s an enormous amount of opportunity there, which is being aggressively followed up on.

There�s one number I didn�t throw out on the visa side. Three to four years ago there were 100 Saudi military officers training in the U.S. Today that number has jumped to 700 officers.

I am most excited about the critical infrastructure protection agreement signed during the President�s visit to train and supply a 35,000 man Saudi force to protect the oil and gas facilities, diesel plants, power generators and future nuclear plants.

This agreement translates into tens of billions of dollars for what will effectively be the third separate military training mission we will be managing in the Kingdom for the largest ministry, the Ministry of Interior. This will involve internal security, the coast guard plus various risk assessments in the oil fields. So, strategically, militarily, commercially this is probably the single biggest initiative for the U.S.�Saudi relationship.

SUSRIS: Where does that program stand?

FRAKER: The agreement has been signed. General Petraeus came to the Kingdom when he was still commander of coalition forces in Iraq to brief the King on the surge. Knowing he was going to be the new CENTCOM commander, we persuaded him to spend an extra day to brief him on the critical infrastructure protection program because under CENTCOM this partnership will be significant. He was so excited about it that four days later a one star general arrived in my office saying he was the advance planning staff for General Petraeus to train the Saudi facilities security force.

SUSRIS: So this security force will be akin to USMTM and OPM SANG?

FRAKER: Absolutely, that�s the model. We�re setting up an OPM-FSF. Similar to OPM-SANG. FSF being �Facilities Security Force.� The 35,000 man force.

SUSRIS: What is the status of the Saudi piece of the major regional military assistance program announced last year?

FRAKER: It�s moving forward. The JDAM has been approved. I believe the AIM-9X has also been approved. We�re now talking F-15 upgrades and other types of equipment.

[Also see the SUSRIS Special Section addressing the U.S. arms sale. Click here.]

COUNTER TERRORISM

SUSRIS: The joint work to counter terrorism has become a major piece of the U.S.-Saudi partnership. How would you characterize those efforts?

FRAKER: We�re clearly on an upward trajectory. The dark days of 9/11 are well behind us, as are the events of 2003 and 2004 in the Kingdom when there were pitched battles in the street against extremists, Westerners were targeted and killed and compounds invaded. During those years, a number of major international financial institutions and companies left the Kingdom. Both sides were deeply shocked by these events.

As I said at the conference today, CIA Director, General Hayden will tell you this is the best, most productive counter terrorism partnership we have in the world, especially when you couple it with the fact that King Abdullah clearly is winning the minds and hearts battle with the populace.

There�s been a certain amount of press directed toward a rehabilitation program started by the Ministry of Interior. It is possibly unique to Saudi Arabia given the social structure of the families and tribes. There is the ability to ensure through that social network that people behave in a certain way, once the social network is on your side.

One of the smartest steps the Saudis took regarding individuals coming back from Guantanamo and Iraq and those caught in the Kingdom is to refer to them as victims, not as criminals. The minute you take that approach it opens up many different avenues for the rehabilitation process. For instance, it allows the government to go to the families and say, �We�re sorry your son has been misled. He is truly the victim of an evil ideology and we want to work with you to ensure that he comes back to the right path.�

So they get the families onside which then gets the tribes onside. Then they deal with the individual in a three-stage process. Stage one is an evaluation with psychologists and psychiatrists to determine where the individual is on the spectrum. Is he a Jihadist who they are never going to be able to reform? Or is he a misled kid who has a chance to turn a new leaf? If they determine he is salvageable then he moves on to stage two, which is the reeducation by religious scholars about what the Koran says about Jihad and everything else.

Stage three is the one we have enormous problems with in the West, because of what they call it. They call it release. So I have to tell people to understand what this is. When the individual is released he has to sign a contract which under Islamic law is important. But not only does he sign it, his family signs it and his tribe signs it. So everyone is onboard to ensure that individual stays on the right path. Then they get him married. They pay for the marriage and the dowry. They then give him a job and then they monitor him for the rest of his life. That�s what release means. In that context it is a unique program. The recidivism rate is very small for those who have been through all the stages of the program.

SUSRIS: The Saudi Interior Ministry recently announced indictments of almost one thousand militants on terrorism charges. Trials are pending.

FRAKER: Yes, through the existing Islamist courts. They want the public to see Taqfirism and Salafism on trial as ideologies.

SUSRIS: What about money flows, charitable donations and so forth? Do the Saudi authorities have a handle on that?

FRAKER: There�s been a dramatic improvement on clamping down on the money flows. Having said that, it is a cash society and you can�t stop people from wiring or taking money out of the country. So, that�s a tough one for any government to deal with. But for sure, the traditional banking system and the normal ways of moving money have been tightened.

REFORM

SUSRIS: What�s your assessment of progress in the areas of social, political and economic reform in the Kingdom?

FRAKER: At the 50 thousand foot level viewpoint, all these issues are moving in the right direction. You can argue whether or not they�re moving fast enough, but they�re clearly moving in the right direction.

Some very exciting things have happened in the last few years. At the conference this morning one of the Ambassadors mentioned the press. Newspapers are now reporting the problems with the mutawwa' and how they are being sued in court. This would have been unthinkable three or four years ago. That�s one example.

Women. All sorts of things are happening there. Sadly it�s a story that doesn�t get told very well especially by the Saudi women themselves. There is an impressive group of ladies who are making a big impact and are a force, certainly commercially. Seventy percent of all savings accounts are controlled by women. Twenty five to thirty five percent of all businesses are owned by women in the Kingdom. The ones I�ve met are accomplished, dynamic, real forces to be reckoned with. And as Bill Gates says you can�t be a modern country and leave 50% of your work force out in the cold.

They are getting appointed and elected to positions in the chambers of commerce. They are establishing a political voice for themselves with the King and senior positions through these chambers of commerce in a way that is very impressive. Again, a long way to go, but it�s happening.

SUSRIS: What about the durability of reform programs. How key is King Abdullah to progress?

FRAKER: He�s pushing on a number of fronts. One example, the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. KAUST has specifically been set up to be a coed environment. What happens when he is gone is a valid question. On many issues, he has proven himself to be a visionary. His position with the people gives him authority, moral authority and a credibility that allows him to do a whole range of things that other kings may have difficulty doing.

IRAN

SUSRIS: What are the expectations among Saudis about how the United States approaches the challenges posed by Iran?

FRAKER: Iran has been the big issue on the minds of the Saudis and they are encouraging us to take an active role in countering the spread of Iranian influence in the region. The impetus for the critical infrastructure program was the attack on Abqaiq in 2006 by local extremists. It is believed that in the event of any problems or hostilities in the region, it will be the Eastern Province oil and gas facilities that will be the targets of both internal and external attacks.

SUSRIS: The prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran raises concerns about proliferation around the Gulf. What�s your view?

FRAKER: This is why the nuclear cooperation package signed during the President�s visit to Saudi Arabia in May was very important politically as well as practically. There are three aspects: a memorandum of understanding to help develop a peaceful nuclear industry; a non-proliferation agreement; and an agreement to combat nuclear terrorism. This should be seen as a strong message to the Iranians on the nuclear front.

SUSRIS: What other regional security issues concern Riyadh?

FRAKER: A big concern is Yemen. People are worried that Al Qaeda is reestablishing itself. Mecca is only 800-900 kilometers from the border and it is difficult to control who is coming in and out because you can�t stop pilgrimages to Mecca.

SUSRIS: Do they see an Iranian hand there?

FRAKER: Yes. They are concerned about Iranian influence everywhere.

About Ambassador Ford M. Fraker

Ford M. Fraker was sworn in on April 11, 2007 as U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At the time of his nomination by President George W. Bush, Ambassador Fraker was serving as Chairman of the Trinity Group Limited, a private investment banking firm in the United Kingdom and as consultant for Intercontinental Real Estate Corporation in Boston, MA.

Ambassador Fraker graduated cum laude from Harvard University in 1971 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He has served as a banker in the Middle East for more than 30 years. He began his career with Chemical Bank where he worked from 1972 to 1979. He worked in Lebanon, the UAE, and Bahrain, ending as a Vice President and Regional Manager for the bank�s Bahrain office. He joined the Saudi International Bank in 1979 and worked for SIB until 1991, holding positions of increasing management responsibility in the bank�s General Banking, Credit and Client Development units. When he left SIB in 1991, Ambassador Fraker was serving on the bank�s Management Committee.

Ambassador Fraker founded Fraker & Co. in 1991, and in 1993, he joined MeesPierson Investment Finance (UK) Limited, where he was the Managing Director responsible for placing U.S. and European investment products with European and Middle Eastern institutional and private investors. In 1997, he co-founded Trinity Group Limited and continued to serve as Managing Director and Chairman until his nomination by President Bush.

Ambassador Fraker was born in Princeton, NJ and speaks French and Arabic.

Source: U.S. State Dept.

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