Riyadh Agreement One of the top stories for local media and commentary was the signing of the Riyadh Agreement, which "ended a three-month standoff that threatened to split the anti-Huthi bloc." (Peter Salisbury, ICG). A wide range of commentary presented this is a major diplomatic triumph for the Kingdom: Yemen could have been tossed into … Continue reading Riyadh Agreement and Aramco IPO (11/4 to 11/11)
الرئيس ترامب وموقع تويتر
الرئيس ترامب وموقع تويتر لم أقدم شيئا باللغة العربية منذ فترة ولكني ظننت أن السلسلة التحقيقة المقدمة من صحيفة النيو يورك تايمز حول استخدام الرئيس ترامب لموقع تتويتر قد يهم البعض. وهي تتكون من 3 أجزاء أترجم اقتباسات منها واحد تلو الاخر في الايام القادمة 1 - في حساب ترامب لتويتر: مؤامرات والعنصريين والجواسيس قام … Continue reading الرئيس ترامب وموقع تويتر
Lebanon, al-Baghdadi, Other Items
Protests in Lebanon A number of Saudi op-eds over the past two weeks have focused on the ongoing protests in Lebanon - mainly focused on the complete lack of credibility of Lebanon's political class with protesters, but with much commentary also highlighting (to various degrees) the implications for Hizbullah and its relationship with Iran. Okaz … Continue reading Lebanon, al-Baghdadi, Other Items
Russia, Turkey, L. Paul Bremer III
President Vladimir Putin and Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, 2018. Source. Saudi-Russia Ties A fair bit of commentary in Okaz on the Kingdom diversifying its relationships by strengthening ties to Russia - to be updated as more comes in. Update [10/17/2019]: Key Themes of Commentary: The Kingdom pursues a flexible foreign policy that balances old … Continue reading Russia, Turkey, L. Paul Bremer III
CBS, MBS and Un-aired Excerpts
Secretary Pompeo Meets With Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Jan. 14, 2019Department of State Much of the domestic media/social media scene has been abuzz with anticipation of, and then coverage of, the Crown Prince’s appearance on CBS for an extended interview with Norah O’Donnell – Al-Watan provided a full run-down of topics raised in … Continue reading CBS, MBS and Un-aired Excerpts
Attacks on Abqaiq and Khurais, Continued
There has been a lot of back-and-forth in the Saudi press about what’s happening with respect to Abqaiq and Iran, although coverage has understandably focused more on Aramco claims of swiftly restoring production than concerns that it will take considerable time to fully repair the severe damage to facilities. This in turn has led some … Continue reading Attacks on Abqaiq and Khurais, Continued
The Eye of the Storm – Abqaiq and Khurais
Kurais oil facility, one of two sites hit by attacks last weekend, in 2017 (Source: Planet Labs, Inc.) Given the demands of other work I don't have time to cover the Saudi media scene at present in depth - suffice to say that coverage of the (almost certainly but not conclusively Iranian-backed) attacks on oil … Continue reading The Eye of the Storm – Abqaiq and Khurais
