Editor's Note:

Saudi Arabia Update
Thomas Lippman on "Middle East Interviews"

Writer, journalist and Middle East specialist Thomas Lippman's recent conversation with radio talk show host Todd Feinburg covered a broad spectrum of topics of interest to SUSRIS readers. Starting with the massive transfer of capital -- an "indigestible amount of cash" -- to the region as a result of the skyrocketing price of crude oil; Saudi Arabia's role in supplying the world energy market; developments in US-Saudi relations; the view from Riyadh on Iranian adventurism; regional power shifts; prospects for Middle East peace; the outlook for Iraq; and more.

Thomas Lippman, who is regularly featured on SUSRIS in articles and interviews, is an Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Institute and a career journalist whose work at the Washington Post included four years as the Middle East Bureau Chief. He is author of "Inside the Mirage: America's Fragile Partnership with Saudi Arabia," and the newly published, "Arabian Knight: Colonel Bill Eddy USMC and the Rise of American Power in the Middle East."

The "Middle East Interviews" page provides a link to the audio version of Mr. Lippman's interview on the Todd Feinburg show. You can also follow the links below to many of Lippman's articles and interviews on SUSRIS and to his books.

Middle East Interviews Blog - Thomas Lippman

Thomas Lippman on SUSRIS:

• "Good Morning, Mr. President" - Thomas Lippman's Briefing for POTUS - SUSRIS IOI - January 11, 2008

• Political and Economic Developments in Saudi-US Relations - A Conversation With Thomas Lippman - SUSRIS Interview - Sep 29, 2007

• Discovery! The Search for Arabian Oil - Wallace Stegner - Foreword by Thomas Lippman - SUSRIS IOI - Sep 18, 2007

• Determined to Remain Friends - A Conversation with Thomas Lippman - Exclusive - SUSRIS Interview - Aug 7, 2007

• A New Regional Leadership - Thomas W. Lippman - SUSRIS IOI - May 10, 2007

• Anniversary of Historic Meeting between Ibn Saud and FDR - SUSRIS IOI - Feb 14, 2007

• Region in Crisis: Fine Lines and Consequences - A Conversation with Thomas W. Lippman - SUSRIS Interview - Aug 2, 2006

• Crawford Summit Perspective: A Conversation with Thomas Lippman - SUSRIS Interview - May 9, 2005

• Insight on the Kingdom from the Author of Inside the Mirage -- A Conversation with Thomas Lippman - Part One - SUSRIS Interview - March 30, 2005

• Insight on the Kingdom from the Author of Inside the Mirage -- A Conversation with Thomas Lippman - Part Two - SUSRIS Interview - Apr 18, 2005

• U.S.-Saudi Relations: A Glass Half Empty, Or Half Full? - An Interview With Thomas Lippman - Exclusive - SUSRIS Interview - Aug 28, 2004

• Thomas Lippman - "Inside The Mirage" - US-Saudi Relations -- SAIS Panel - SUSRIS IOI - Dec 16, 2003

About Thomas Lippman

Thomas W. Lippman is an adjunct scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington. In four years as the Washington Post's Middle East bureau chief, three years as the Post's oil and energy reporter and a decade as the newspaper's national security and diplomatic correspondent, he traveled extensively to Saudi Arabia. He is the author of Inside the Mirage: America's Fragile Partnership with Saudi Arabia, Madeleine Albright and the New American Diplomacy, Understanding Islam, and Egypt After Nasser. A writer and journalist specializing in U.S. foreign policy and Middle Eastern affairs, he lives in Washington, DC.
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Books by Thomas Lippman:

• "Inside the Mirage: America's Fragile Partnership with Saudi Arabia"

• "Arabian Knight: Colonel Bill Eddy USMC and the Rise of American Power in the Middle East"

• "Discovery!: The Search for Arabian Oil," by Wallace Stegner -- Foreword by Thomas Lippman

The Middle East Institute -- "Since 1946 the Middle East Institute has been an important conduit of information between Middle Eastern nations and American policymakers, organizations and the public. We strive to increase knowledge of the Middle East among our own citizens and to promote understanding between the peoples of the Middle East and America. Today we play a vital and unique role in expanding the dialogue beyond Washington, DC, and actively with organizations in the Middle East.."