More military aid as Saudis continue to hinder war effort

Media reports today indicate that the U.S. will provide an influx of military aid to several allies in the Middle East, to include Saudi Arabia.  According to the BBC, $20 billion in new assistance will be split between the kingdom and several Gulf states.  This comes on the heels of a story in the New York Times last Friday that detailed American frustration at perceived Saudi obstructionism vis-à-vis Iraq.  As far back as January, the Times reports, Saudi officials approached the U.S. government with alleged evidence of Iraqi PM Nuri al-Maliki’s complicity with Iran.  These allegations were dismissed as false by administration officials (and the supporting paperwork declared forgeries).

That the Saudis oppose the Shia government in Baghdad is no secret. US Ambassador to the UN (and formerly to Iraq) Zalmay Khalilzad recently wrote that “several of Iraq’s neighbors — not only Syria and Iran but also some friends of the United States — are pursuing destabilizing policies” in the region.  Administration officials have apparently admitted that this was a reference to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, in particular.  So why is the U.S. government seemingly willing to overlook a significant ally’s complete refusal to accommodate American interests on a priority of U.S. foreign policy, namely the stabilization of Iraq and quashing of civil (or proxy) war there?

Saudi oil diplomacy

I keep reading that the Saudis are helping us put pressure on Iran, notably through their refusal to cut back production as part of an OPEC plan to drive up prices. So why are CNN Money and the WSJ reporting that they are now doing exactly that? And why is outgoing Saudi ambassador to the U.S. Turki al-Faisal “dismiss[ing] speculation that Saudi Arabia was trying to drive down oil prices to constrain export revenues for political rival Iran”? Not that I’d be shocked to find a diplomat being coy about something so touchy when questioned, but doesn’t this step seem to suggest that he’s actually being straightforward and honest?