Muslim pilgrims wear masks at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
Photographer: Abdel Ghani Bashir / AFP / Getty Images
Photographer: Abdel Ghani Bashir / AFP / Getty Images
When Chinese diplomat Tan Banglin defended his country’s treatment of Muslims amid an international outcry, his comments were less remarkable than where he made them.
In a column last July for one of the most widely read newspapers in Saudi Arabia – the traditional protector of Muslims worldwide – Tan spoke about how the Communist Party joined the people in Xinjiang province, leading to “big” changes. This is how nations, including the United States, accusing China of placing Uighurs in detention camps.
The voice given to China‘s consul general in Jeddah, less than 70 kilometers from the most sacred city in Islam, Mecca, reflects the new political reckoning under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who prioritizes more secular national interests at a critical time for the kingdom. And it is something that can help you with government changes in Washington, despite US opposition to Beijing’s actions in Xinjiang.
Portraits of Mohammed bin Salman and King Salman at a construction site in King Abdullah’s financial district in Riyadh.
Photographer: Tasneem Alsultan / Bloomberg
The Saudi world view is being shaped more by obstinate business calculations, changes in geopolitical realities and the emergence of clean energy as an oil competitor, while facing a challenge from Turkey for leadership in the Sunni Muslim sphere.
The kingdom has been talking less about the Palestinian issue, which for decades has been the cause of it. Saudi support for the Muslim population has been noted for its absence in the disputed region of Kashmir, with the Pakistani government turning to Turkey while Prince Mohammed increases trade with India.
“Saudi Arabia suffered from transnational political Islamism, where some of its citizens were the first to travel to help other Muslims, but they did not identify much with their own national causes,” said Prince Abdullah bin Khaled, a Saudi academic. “A change of course was necessary and very welcome.”
US President Joe Biden has promised to treat Saudi Arabia as an outcast after four years of warm relations with his predecessor, Donald Trump. Talks about human rights issues, his devastating war against Yemen and rivalry with Iran are likely to be uncomfortable when they do happen.
There may also be more tension over the 2018 murder by critic and columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul after Biden’s nominee for director of national intelligence this week promised to release a report on who was responsible for the murder.
Read More: US disclosure of Khashoggi report could embarrass Saudi prince
But stepping back from intervention abroad under the guise of supporting other Muslims – as Turkey is doing – may score some points with the Biden government, according to Emily Hawthorne, a Texas-based analyst at Stratfor, who advises clients on geopolitical risks.
“Saudis can see that becoming more of a modernized nation with an economic focus is more important than continuing to nurture this leadership role in the wider Muslim world,” he said. Hawthorne. “It is a gamble, but it could end well for them in terms of gaining some influence in Saudi Arabia. “
Mohammed bin Salman
Photographer: Alexander Zemlianichenko / AFP / Getty Images
Until a few years ago, it would have been rare to see warm praise for a communist party printed in Saudi Arabia, not to mention one from the representative of a country that was censored for its alleged persecution of Muslims. In the 1980s, the Saudis sent money, and later their children, to Afghanistan to join the fight against that country’s Soviet occupation.
Saudi relations with China have strengthened beyond the supply of oil. King Salman, who took the throne in 2015, and the Crown Prince made separate visits to Beijing. On his trip in 2019, the prince appeared to defend the supposed repression of Muslims in China and signed an agreement to build a $ 10 billion refining and petrochemical complex.
This month, Huawei of China launched its largest store outside of China, in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. Investment Minister Khalid AlFalih tweeted the news, saying he was “delighted” with the ad.
Mohammed bin Salman meets Xi Jinping in Beijing in 2019.
Photographer: How Hwee Young / AFP / Getty Images
It is a journey that began slowly after 9/11, terrorist attacks by 19 hijackers, 15 of them Saudis, and accelerated under Prince Mohammed.
Under pressure to contain extremists, Saudi Arabia launched a successful campaign against radicals in the 2000s. Significantly, the late King Abdullah turned National Saudi Arabia Day on September 23 into a holiday, irritating radicals who believe that Muslims should not be divided by borders.
When he came to power four years ago, Prince Mohammed it stopped the influence of the powerful religious system, gave women more freedom and allowed concerts and cinemas. He also tightened control over how financial aid is distributed abroad, making it primarily for governments, rather than directly for Muslim groups. Alcohol, which the Qur’an prohibits, remains banned.
The change was not an abandonment of Muslim issues, but “balancing support for them with the imperatives, sensibilities and priorities of the state, knowing that different contexts dictate different realities,” said Prince Abdullah, the scholar.
In fact, Saudi Arabia used to be the first country to be blamed for fueling Islamic terrorism. However, after a series of horrific attacks by jihadists in France last year, it was Turkey that French President Emmanuel Macron appointed as a instigator.
Prince Mohammed made it clear that the kingdom’s duty is to take care of the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina and make them accessible to Muslims around the world.
Source: AFP / Getty Images
Saudi Arabia will always have a physical right to Islam. Prince Muhammad, through his actions and decisions, made it clear that the kingdom’s duty is to take care of the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina and make them accessible to Muslims worldwide. One of the objectives of his economic restructuring plan is to expand both locations and increase the number of pilgrims.
At the same time, the leadership signaled that it is not the duty of the kingdom to fix the problems of Muslims around the world.
When India revoked almost seven decades of autonomy detained by the restless and predominantly Muslim state of Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan, which also claims the region, he hoped Saudi Arabia would galvanize Muslims around this issue. The kingdom, the biggest source of remittances to Pakistan and among its biggest creditors, do not.
Rather than, trade with India, which the kingdom sees as an important economic power, has since prospered, as Saudi Arabia seeks to deepen its presence in that country. In the third quarter of 2020, India, along with Egypt, spurred an increase in foreign investment in the kingdom, a key pillar of the Crown Prince’s economic diversification plan.
Meanwhile, Turkey has intensified ties with Islamabad. His foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, opened a new consulate in Pakistan this month, promised to send investors to explore opportunities and chaired the signing of deals in the film industry.
Turkish-Pakistani relations are “unique and enviable” Mujahid Anwar Khan, Pakistan’s chief of staff, told the Turkish state Andalou Agency this month. He thanked the Turkish leadership for their “statements of support” in Kashmir.
O The Saudis may be losing the soft power game to Turkey at the moment, Hawthorne said. “But they are probably valuing other games.” “Turkey has economic limits on how much it is willing to sacrifice its own economic interests in pursuit of soft power. This is never a zero-sum game. ”