U.S.-Saudi Arabia - William Burns - Conference - CIT / New America Foundation

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ITEM OF INTEREST
May 14, 2009

U.S.-Saudi Relations in a World Without Equilibrium
Conference Transcripts -- Keynote Address
William J. Burns
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs

Editor's Note:

Last week a major forum addressing the state of and prospects for the relationship between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was convened in Washington by the New America Foundation (NAF) and the Committee for International Trade (CIT) of the Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry. Distinguished speakers spent the day providing perspectives and insights on what the relationship should look like, how economics was shaping the national security picture vis a vis the relationship, the challenges for America in the region and how the perspective on these challenges look from the Saudi Arabian point of view.

Today we are pleased to provide the transcripts from the keynote address by Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William J. Burns who was introduced by Steve Clemons, the conference organizer from the New America Foundation. Of note, Secretary Burns mentioned in his remarks that King Abdullah had met with Israeli President Shimon Peres in New York when both were attending the "Culture of Peace" Interfaith Dialogue meeting at the United Nations. Shortly after Burns' comments the Saudi government claimed he was mistaken and demanded a retraction. Burns also discussed the case of an 8-year old girl who was married to a man reported to be in his 50's. Three days after the conference there was a reversal in the case and a judge annulled the marriage. On May 3, 2009 Arab News reported that the Saudi government had begun studying regulation of marriage among minors.

Separate emails will provide each panelist's remarks and the question and answer period transcript. Transcripts for the remaining panels and luncheon remarks will be provided over the next few days. You can find all of the conference materials and related links at a new SUSRIS Special Section. [ "U.S.-Saudi Relations in a World Without Equilibrium" - Conference Special Section ]

U.S.-Saudi Relations in a World Without Equilibrium
Conference Transcripts -- Keynote Address
William J. Burns
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs

[Steve Clemons] I am Steve Clemons. I direct the foreign policy programs at The New America Foundation. We are so honored to be sponsoring today's forum, "U.S.-Saudi Relations in a World without Equilibrium" with our partners the Committee for International Trade of the Saudi Chambers of Commerce.

Many of you have been here all morning. Some of you were with us last night. And it's a great pleasure to be doing this and to be dragging, to some degree, the U.S.-Saudi relationship in the discussion of its strategic importance both on the economic front and then the broader geostrategic level into a public airing. And it's something we hope, is just the beginning of an ongoing trend here in Washington, but also back in Saudi Arabia. And we hope that The New America Foundation can be part of that discussion back in Saudi Arabia.

Bill Burns is of course Undersecretary of State for political affairs. William J. Burns was previously ambassador to Russia. And when I really began in the New American Foundation to become deeply involved in Middle East issues -- my background was more in Asia -- you could see Bill Burns' fingerprints on so many important efforts. Some of them came forward, some of them didn't. When he was Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs -- and of course before that he was the Ambassador to Jordan.

Bill Burns is one of the people, I keep telling people, I feel like we are in a Dean Acheson moment again in our history. There are so many people in Washington who govern what they do tomorrow by what they did yesterday.

We don't have enough people who think about how do you change the forces of gravity politically and geostrategically to get us in a different place. And without embellishing, I think Bill Burns is one of those people, and I have known it and thought this for very long time. He has been a subject -- and I never asked if you like it. I write a blog called the Washington Note, and I have written about him a lot, never knowing whether he liked the harassment or the applause, but Bill Burns is really one of our country's key architects in national security, and the Obama administration is very, very fortunate to have him and of course he's served many administrations.

Let me emphasize this complicated part for the media. This part is on the record. CSPAN is taping with this on the record. Because we want to achieve a relative level of candor during the questions and discussion, it is off the record, and we are shutting down CSPAN. We are shutting down; we've had over 3000 people with us this morning watching online. We are going to suspend that for 25 minutes and then at the BlackBerry break come back.

It's important, all of our friends whether they are from the Middle East, from the United States, the Korea Times is here I think. Wherever. Respect the issue of the off the record discussion, we will achieve more that way.

So, without further adieu please welcome William J. Burns Undersecretary of States for Political Affairs.

[William J. Burns] Thank you very much Steve, and good afternoon to all of you. Thanks again for the kind introduction. It truly is an honor to speak at an event sponsored by The New America Foundation, an institution for which I have great respect. And it is a pleasure to offer a few thoughts on relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia, an issue which holds high priority for President Obama, Secretary Clinton, and the entire Obama administration.

As all of you in this distinguished audience know better than me, few countries in the world today matter more to American interests than Saudi Arabia.

And few are more consequential for the kind of international order we seek. Americans and Saudis have our share of disagreements, but our shared interests far outnumber our differences. To counter the well-deserved reputation of diplomats for a long-windedness and to ease your digestion over lunch, I promise to be brief.

Whenever I think of the virtue of brevity in public speaking I am reminded of a story involving a famous author George Bernard Shaw. It seems that Shaw was hosting an event in London one day. The first speaker came up to him and asked how long he should speak for and Shaw told him he should probably limit his remarks to about 20 minutes.

The speaker looked at him in horror and said "20 minutes? How am I supposed to tell them everything I know in 20 minutes?" And Shaw paused and looked back to the man and replied, "In your case, my advice will be to speak very slowly."

In my case, you don't have to worry about me going much beyond 20 minutes, even if I speak very slowly. What I will try to do is sketch the main outline so that the administration's approach to the crucial swath of the globe that runs from Morocco to Pakistan and then to highlight the ways in which U.S.-Saudi cooperation is essential to our mutual success. It is tempting when considering the daunting challenges of the modern Middle East to treat them as an a la carte menu to focus on some problems and ignore others. We simply don't have that luxury.

We have to understand the connections between those challenges from unresolved regional conflicts -- particularly the Palestinian issue, undiversified economies, unresponsive political systems, unrestrained proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and unchecked violent extremist groups who feed off all of the above.

We have to confront those challenges persistently and comprehensively across a broad front. We need to make common cause with as many partners as possible in the region and outside it. As President Obama has made clear, we have to proceed with a sense of humility, which history reinforces, but also with a sense of possibility.

The truth is that a broad positive agenda of the sort that we are embarked upon is the best antidote to the essentially destructive agenda of the militant minorities who threaten the region and who are much better at tearing down than they are at building up. That is why we are engaging actively and resolutely across an interconnected set of issues.

We are working with our partners to stem extremism and prevent terror and to deny safe haven for terrorists throughout the region, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are committed to working with our partners to seek an end to persistent conflicts in the region, in particular achieving a lasting peace between Israel and its neighbors with both an Israeli and Palestinian state living side by side in peace, dignity and security.

While we work for a worldwide reduction of nuclear arsenals, we seek to prevent the emergence of any new nuclear armed states and to strengthen the nonproliferation regimes. We share the concerns of others that Iran pursues the destabilizing agenda in the region and beyond.

We believe the best way to address this danger is through a diplomatic solution to the range of serious challenges posed by Iran. We seek an Iraq that is sovereign stable and self reliant, integrated politically, economically into the region and beyond and a partner contributing to regional peace and security.

We are working cooperatively with the G-20 and other countries and international organizations to help the global economy recover from the current crisis and define ways to foster economic prosperity. In that regard, we welcome the moderating influence that Saudi Arabia plays in global energy markets.

Mindful of our own sometimes imperfect record, we seek to expand across the region respect for the rule of law as well as freedom of religion and expression. We have reoriented our approach to diplomacy, focusing on partnership, pragmatism, and principle. This puts a premium on listening to each other, respecting differences and seeking common ground and areas of shared interests.

We are strengthening our historic alliances, cultivating new relationships, and drawing from all possible contributors including the private sectors, civil society, and individual citizens. Across this complicated agenda, U.S. interests and Saudi interests largely coincide. President Obama and King Abdullah underscored that common approach in their first meeting in London three weeks ago.

We both have a powerful stake in combating extremism, advancing security in Afghanistan and Pakistan, achieving a durable Arab-Israeli peace, ensuring that Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons' capacity or become a regional hegemon and overcoming the current economic crisis.

Our counterterrorism relationship with the Saudis has deepened considerably in recent years. While there is critical law enforcement and military component to protecting innocents from acts of terror, there is also a longer term needs to expose the hollow and distorted ideology used by extremists to recruit the disenchanted.

The Government of Saudi Arabia has become a partner in the ideological struggle against extremism. King Abdullah has advanced in interfaith dialogue initiative, focused on promoting tolerance and understanding among world religions, including a series of high-level dialogues in Mecca, Madrid, and most recently, New York.

On the margins of an interfaith dialogue sessions last fall, the King spoke with Israeli President Peres, the first such exchange between Saudi and Israeli leaders. King Abdullah is also the first Saudi leader to meet with the Pope.

For our part, the United States understands that we have much work to do to rebuild trust, especially in the Muslim world. President Obama has made clear that the United States is not and will never be at war with Islam. Indeed, we seek to work with Muslim countries, to counteract the violent ideology of extremism, and instead replace it with a sense of hope and possibility.

The Saudis also run one of the world's most effective rehabilitation programs for captured extremists and have recently embarked on a series of public terrorism trials designed to solidify Saudi public opinion against extremism. We have an active dialogue about how to work together with Yemen. Our prospects for success in Afghanistan and in Pakistan are enhanced by deepening our cooperation with Saudi Arabia. More than 80 nations, including Saudi Arabia, participated in the international conference on Afghanistan in The Hague last month. That meeting was followed by a donor's conference on Pakistan in Tokyo, where we were heartened to see the Saudi government pledge $700 million over two years to support Pakistan's short-term economic stabilization and long-term development and reform.

We share an interest in Pakistan's stability and must work together to disrupt, dismantle and defeat Al Qaida. We're also working closely with our Gulf allies to cut off private financial flows to the Taliban as well as Al Qaida.

Saudi Arabia is an essential partner in our efforts to promote a lasting, two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. As the author of the Arab peace initiative, Saudi Arabia staked out a bold posture, offering a vision for ending the conflict between Israel and the Arab world.

As the President and Secretary Clinton have repeatedly emphasized, the Arab peace initiative is an important contribution to prospects for peace in the region. The President named one of our most experienced diplomats and peacemakers, Senator George Mitchell, as his special envoy for Middle East peace. And Senator Mitchell continues to coordinate closely with King Abdullah and the Saudi leadership. A necessary precondition for movement toward a final settlement is a strengthened Palestinian authority that can provide needed leadership and services to the Palestinian people.

Saudi Arabia, with over $200 million in budgetary support for the Palestinian Authority in 2008, has traditionally been the leader of the Arab states and its financial commitment. We hope that Saudi Arabia will, as we have, commit new resources to the PA budget this year. In addition, the Saudis led Arab efforts to support Gaza reconstruction, pledging over $1 billion in the Sharm el-Sheikh donor's conference in March.

We must also work together to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. This has profound importance for the Middle East. President Obama underscored in Prague, earlier this month, America's determination to lead international efforts on this issue.

Having endorsed the proliferation security initiative and the global initiative to combat nuclear terrorism, Saudi Arabia is a full partner in this critical campaign. In particular, we share our Gulf Allies concern about the destabilizing role Iran has played throughout the region, and about the extraordinary dangers that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose.

What is clear is that non-engagement with Iran has not been an effective tactic. President Obama has made clear our desire to achieve a diplomatic resolution of our serious differences with Iran, including direct dialogue with Iranian officials in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

We will go into this with an open hand, but also with open eyes. Given our long and difficult experience with Iran, we have no illusions about the challenges ahead, nor do we have any intention of compromising the interests of our friends in the region, and we will continue to work closely with Saudi Arabia in particular.

Ambassador Dennis Ross, our special envoy for the Gulf and Southwest Asia, will be in Riyadh this week to engage directly with the Saudi leadership. This is not, and cannot be, a zero-sum game. We hope that the Iranian leadership makes a decision to accept the President's offer with an open hand, to curb its threatening behavior and to reassure the international community of the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear program.

We hope that tough-minded direct diplomacy will produce results. But whether those hopes are realized or not, our commitment to Saudi Arabia and our friends in the Gulf remains unbreakable.

Another vitally important ingredient in Gulf security, is Iraq's revival and reintegration as a responsible player in the region. It is essential, for Saudi Arabia to contribute to that process. Certainly, here again, Saudi Arabia has a strong stake in continuing to see a stable and secure Iraq play its role in shaping a more positive and hopeful future in the area.

We welcome King Abdullah's participation in the April G-20 summit in London. While the G-20 made progress in shoring up world markets, the financial picture remains precarious and we will need to continue to work closely with Saudi Arabia and our other partners.

In the G-20 and in the International Energy Forum, a producer-consumer group the Saudis have championed, we are both working for stable energy markets to support a global recovery. We acknowledge the significant investments the Kingdom has made in oil production capacity to provide market security for the world.

For our part, we have recently launched a new partnership arrangement with the Saudi Ministry of Interior to develop a dedicated Saudi security force to help safeguard Saudi Arabia's critical energy infrastructure from outside threats. We also commend the Saudis for resisting the temptation, in times of economic difficulty, to impose protectionist trade practices that could further weaken the global economy. The Saudis have actually lowered over 70 line-item tariffs.

While the United States and Saudi interests frequently overlap, it is no secret that our histories, cultures and social mores at times differ. While we welcome the reforms undertaken by King Abdullah in recent years, there are issues on which we disagree and in which we do not hesitate to air our disagreements publicly with Saudi Arabia. We know that the Saudi government sometimes publicly disagrees with us. This is a normal part of a healthy and honest relationship.

We are all aware of disturbing reports on human rights abuses, including recently the case of the Saudi judge who upheld the marriage of an 8-year-old girl to a 50-year-old man. Child marriage is, unfortunately, still common in much of Saudi Arabia and we have voiced our concern about this practice at the highest levels.

We were encouraged by reports that the Justice Ministry had begun to review the legal age of marriage. At the same time, King Abdullah has proven himself a reformist force within Saudi society. Over the objections of religious conservatives, the King has advanced a reform program aimed at modernizing educational and judicial establishments.

In February, he announced sweeping government reforms and broadened participation on senior religious councils. We hope the Saudis will embrace a meaningful reform agenda that will improve the lives of both Saudis and foreigners, working inside the Kingdom.

I suspect that I am now perilously close to the 20-minute barrier that I promised to respect at the outset of my remarks. So, let me conclude simply by restating the glaringly obvious. A great deal depends on how well the United States and Saudi Arabia cooperate on a dizzying array of challenges.

From the global economic crisis to Afghanistan and Pakistan to Middle East peace, to Iran and preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. Neither of us can afford to become complacent about our relationship or about what is at stake.

Sixty four years ago President Franklin Roosevelt and King Abdul Aziz first glimpsed the possibilities of Saudi-American partnership when they held their historic meeting aboard the USS Quincy. Much has changed in the years since then, but one thing that hasn't is the significance of our partnership.

For all of the inevitable ups and downs in our relationship, leaders on both sides retain an abiding appreciation on how much we depend on one another and of how much the rest of the world depends on our cooperation.

The New America Foundation has done a real service by highlighting that reality through this event.

Thanks again for inviting me, and I wish you success over the rest of the conference. Thank you.

[Visit the SUSRIS Special Section "U.S.-Saudi Relations in a World Without Equilibrium" for the transcripts from this and other panels and additional resources.

For video and audio presentations click here.

Speaker Biography:

William J. Burns
Under Secretary, Political Affairs

Term of Appointment: 05/13/2008 to present

Bill Burns holds the highest rank in the Foreign Service, Career Ambassador, and became Under Secretary for Political Affairs, the highest career position in the State Department, in May 2008.

Ambassador Burns served from 2005 until 2008 as Ambassador to Russia. He was Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs from 2001 until 2005, and Ambassador to Jordan from 1998 until 2001. Ambassador Burns has also served in a number of other posts since entering the Foreign Service in 1982, including: Executive Secretary of the State Department and Special Assistant to Secretaries Christopher and Albright; Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow; Acting Director and Principal Deputy Director of the State Department's Policy Planning Staff; and Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Near East and South Asian Affairs at the National Security Council staff.

Ambassador Burns earned a B.A. in History from LaSalle University and M.Phil. and D.Phil. degrees in International Relations from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar. He is the recipient of three honorary doctoral degrees. Ambassador Burns is the author of Economic Aid and American Policy Toward Egypt, 1955-1981 (State University of New York Press, l985). He speaks Russian, Arabic, and French, and is the recipient of two Presidential Distinguished Service Awards and a number of Department of State awards, including two Distinguished Honor Awards, the 2006 Charles E. Cobb, Jr. Ambassadorial Award for Initiative and Success in Trade Development, the 2005 Robert C. Frasure Memorial Award for conflict resolution and peacemaking, and the James Clement Dunn Award. In 1994, he was named to TIME Magazine's list of the "50 Most Promising American Leaders Under Age 40", and to TIME's list of "100 Young Global Leaders."

Ambassador Burns and his wife, Lisa Carty, have two daughters.

Source: US State Dept.

AGENDA

Panel I: A Forward Projection of What the Saudi-U.S. Relationship Should Look Like and Needs to Achieve

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