NEW YORK, 1 February — "The Saudis are coming!" This could be the title of the charm offensive that Saudi Arabia plans to launch in the United States today. The first phase of the offensive comes in the form of a massive turnout at the World Economic Forum, which opened here yesterday.
Apart from 77 businessmen the Kingdom will be represented by at least 20 senior officials. The delegation is expected to include Prince Nawaf ibn Abdul Aziz, the current head of the Saudi intelligence services, and his predecessor Prince Turki Al-Faisal. Prince Nawaf, the most senior Saudi royal present by age, is designated as spokesman for the Saudi delegation at the forum.
Also present will be Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, governor of Asir, along with Prince Abdullah ibn Faisal ibn Turki who heads the Saudi Investment Council and a participant in last year’s forum at Davos, Switzerland.
Minister of Oil Ali Al-Naimi and Minister of Economy and Finance Ibrahim Al-Assaf will represent the Saudi Cabinet. Altogether eight Saudis, including Prince Turki Al-Faisal and Naimi will be present on various panels dealing with the current state of relations between the Arab and Islamic world and the Western powers.
The Saudi charm offensive will not be limited to the forum’s framework. Officials and businessmen here plan to meet a large number of media and business people on the sidelines of the forum.
There is also talk of organizing a series of post-forum tours to various states to explain Saudi Arabia’s position on issues of interest to the American public.
The signal for the Saudi charm offensive came earlier this week with an interview granted by Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, to the New York Times and Washington Post. Both newspapers have carried a series of reports and editorials about the alleged deterioration of relations between Riyadh and Washington. The compound effect of their coverage has been a certain malaise in bilateral relations that the Saudi leader tried to dispel.
The crown prince’s assertion here was designed not only to soften the image of the Kingdom but also to emphasize its "strategic and unshakable friendship" with the United States. The Saudi reception in Davos last year has already become something of a record in the forum’s 31-year-long history. It attracted over 1,200 guests and impressed many participants by the sumptuous nature of its hospitality that included the offering of gifts to every guest.
According to Saudi sources, this year’s reception will be "even grander, even more impressive." Despite all that it would be wrong to underestimate the difficulties that the Saudis will face in restoring the image of Kingdom as a privileged and always dependable friend of the United States.
Almost six months of anti-Saudi campaign in the US media could not be countered by a few appearances in New York and a reception. What is needed in the end is direct personal contact at the highest level and as soon as possible. According to US sources, such contacts are already under study with the aim of organizing a visit to Washington by Crown Prince Abdullah in spring.
The Saudi charm offensive has three key themes. The first is that Saudis are unanimous in condemning the atrocities of Sept. 11 without any "ifs" and "buts." It will be recalled that those who attacked New York and Washington had also attacked Saudi Arabia on previous occasions, claiming many Saudi victims.
The second theme is that Saudi-American friendship is a strategic feature of the Kingdoms overall policy and not subject to changes of occasion and mood. It will be recalled that the Kingdom is one of America’s oldest and mot loyal allies, having established privileged ties with it almost 70 years ago.
The third point is that the Kingdom demands a more active peacemaking role by the US in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. This is not only just but also politically wise for the US itself. It will be emphasized that Saudi criticism of Israeli policy should not be seen as a criticism of the United States.
One thorny question concerns the 150 or more Saudi citizens held by the US in Gunatanamo Bay on suspicion of belonging to the Al-Qaeda terror group. This is an entirely new problem in international law and there are no obvious solutions.
The Saudis have indicated that they wish to have their citizens back and pursue charges against them on the basis of the Kingdom’s own laws. But there is no indication that Riyadh would want to turn that issue into a new cause of conflict with Washington. The case concerns at least 11 to other countries whose citizens are held in Gunatanamo Bay. The Saudis plan to work in conjunction with those countries in a common search for a solution.
Just days before the Saudis were due to launch their charm offensive, Riyadh announced a series of measures to fight money laundering and freeze assets that could be used to finance terrorism. The news has pleased the Bush administration. "This is a right move at the right time," a source said. "We expect other moves to help eradicate terrorism by drying up its sources of finance."
