In This Issue

1. "Special Energy Supplement:  The New Geopolitics of Oil," by Joe Barnes, Amy Jaffe & Edward L. Morse 
2. "On A Dagger's Edge" by Faye Bowers, Staff Writer for The Christian Science Monitor
    Part 1 - "How an Al Qaeda Hotbed Turned Inhospitable"
    Part 2 - "For Saudis, A Hard Fight Over Faith"
3. From the History of Saudi-U.S. Relations
4. On the Web - "Testing the Saudi 'Will to Power':  Challenges Confronting Prince Abdallah," by Joseph A. Kechichian, Middle East Policy Council Journal
5. On the Bookshelf - The Traditional Architecture of Saudi Arabia by G. R. D. King and Geoffrey Kingscott
6. What is SUSRIS?

An Item of Interest from SUSRIS

Special Energy Supplement:  
The New Geopolitics of Oil
By Joe Barnes, Amy Jaffe & Edward L. Morse

We are entering a potentially historic moment of opportunity in U.S. oil strategy. The current reassessment of U.S. foreign policy is perhaps more far-ranging than any undertaken since the onset of the Cold War in the late 1940s. Energy strategy is a key part of this reassessment, an impetus driven in large part by renewed public concerns about our oil dependence on the Middle East.

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From The History of the Saudi-US Relationship

U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, Comments on U.S.-Saudi Relations

Secretary Rumsfeld Interview with C-SPAN (Interview with Connie Brod, Washington Journal, C-SPAN)

January 8, 2002

[Excerpt]

Question:  I have two questions for you.. ..what is our mission in Saudi Arabia, these are my three choices, protecting the royalty who is hiding behind our military, safeguarding the area, protecting our interest for oil, or none or all of the above.

My second question is, given --

U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld: Could I answer that one first?

That was a multiple choice question. The role of the United States in Saudi Arabia has been fairly consistent over the past 50-60 years, and it has been the fact that Saudi Arabia has been a moderate Arab regime that has been friendly to the United States, as has Jordan, for example, and for the most part Egypt in recent decades, as well as some other states. And we have been able to cooperate with Saudi Arabia in a way that has assisted us, for example, in conducting the war against Iraq when Iraq invaded Kuwait. And we do have some forces that are there now that enable us to fly aircraft and contribute to peace and stability in the region. It has been in Saudi Arabia's interest, and it has been in the United States' interest to do so.

Click here for a complete transcript of the interview.

Source:  U.S. Department of Defense

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On the Web

"Testing the Saudi 'Will to Power':  Challenges Confronting Prince Abdallah" 
by Joseph A. Kechichian, Middle East Policy Council Journal, Volume X, Winter 2003, Number 4

"If the Al Saud faced the wrath of extremist elements in November 1979, when the Makkah Mosque was occupied for three long weeks by hundreds of neo-Ikhwan supporters, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia faced a double rage in 2003. Riyadh confronted the fury of Western authorities in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on American soil and, after the May 12, 2003, terrorist bombings, the vengeance of radical Islamists at home. Although surrounded by a very large retinue, the heir apparent and regent, Abdallah bin Abd al-Aziz, faced these challenges more or less alone. Epoch-making changes have unfolded on his watch, and how he "guides" them will probably mark the fate of the kingdom and the Al Saud for at least a generation. What confronts the affable Abdallah, much like what faced his half-brother the late King Faysal bin Abd al-Aziz in the early 1960s, is a test of will. How he responds to accusations that Saudi Arabia supported terrorist activities throughout the Muslim world and how successfully he introduces sorely needed sociopolitical reforms, will surely shape the kingdom's immediate future. Yet, much like his older brother, who saved the Al Saud dynasty in 1964, Abdallah may well restore the ruling family's tarnished image in the West as well as reinstate its influence throughout the Muslim world.^"

Click here for the complete article.

[Note: Links to "On the Web" items were active on the day this newsletter is distributed.  Host sites may remove the item at a later date or alter the link.]
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On the Bookshelf

The Traditional Architecture of Saudi Arabia
by G. R. D. King and Geoffrey Kingscott

Book Description
Saudi Arabia encompasses a greater variety of architectural styles than any other country in the Arabian Peninsula. The buildings of the coastal, mountain and plains regions are entirely distinctive and local in their character. By contrast, several towns, especially Mecca and Medina, have naturally been directly exposed to foreign architectural influences. In this painstaking work, Geoffrey King records in text and an extensive range of pictures, line drawings and ground plans a tradition of Islamic architecture unique to Arabia. He describes the characteristic features of the vernacular style for the towns and villages of each region - the Red Sea coast, the northern inland oases, the southwestern mountains, the central plains of Najd and the eastern Gulf Coast - and how buildings were used. In the process, King draws on the record of earlier visitors to Arabia's cities, towns and villages to provide a rich historical context for the country's architecture, while at the same time providing a detailed description of building materials, construction techniques and technology in the use of coral, plaster, mudbrick and stone.
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About the Saudi-US Relations Information Service

The Saudi-US Relations Information Service (SUSRIS) provides you information resources and interactive features through a web site and weekly newsletter -- all designed to enhance your understanding of the historic relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi-US Relations Information Service is a public service of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations as an element of its mission to educate Americans about Arab countries, the Middle East, and the Islamic world.

We invite you to explore the site: signup for the SUSRIS newsletter, join the discussion forum, browse the bookshelf and photo album, and more. Make the SUSRIS your home page or add it to your Favorites List. Check back from time to time to see what we've added -- what you see today is just the beginning.

For more information about the service please visit the website at: http://www.SaudiUSRelations.org 
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Saudi-US Relations Information Service

A Public Service of the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations
1140 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20036
eMail:[email protected]  
Web: http://www.Saudi-US-Relations.org 

Photo Credits
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