Saudi Crown Prince in the Mirror of the Media

The 32-year-old Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, is currently considered the main orchestrator of the domestic and foreign policies of the country. In addition to his position as crown prince, he has been appointed to several other positions including Minister of Defense and First Deputy Prime Minister. The American news website 'Business Insider' reports that Mohammed bin Salman has become the 'most powerful' political figure in the history of Saudi Arabia over the past two years. He first made headlines for implementing several reforms in women's human rights in the conservative Saudi society, and then for his hardline policies against Iran and the arrest of many wealthy relatives. Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has called Saudi leaders, including Mohammed bin Salman, 'fools', while Donald Trump, the President of the United States, expressed his support for his policies after meeting with the crown prince. Mohammed bin Salman completed his primary and secondary education in Riyadh and graduated with a degree in law from King Saud University. Known among Saudi youth and in some foreign media as 'MBS', he founded a non-profit organization called MiSK aimed at promoting educational and managerial skills for young people wanting to start businesses. For his activities with this foundation, he received the 'Person of the Year' award from the Middle Eastern section of Forbes magazine in 2013. After serving in various governmental and non-governmental positions in Saudi Arabia, he was appointed Minister of Defense on January 23, 2015, shortly after his father ascended to the throne. Two months after this appointment, he took command of a military operation in Yemen against Iranian-backed Houthis. The military intervention led by Mohammed bin Salman in Yemen to repel the Iranian-supported Houthi Shiites and restore Yemen's legitimate government has not yet achieved the desired results. The 'Business Insider' website states that a 'large portion' of the Saudi royal ground forces consider the Yemen war to be 'disastrous' and Mohammed bin Salman lacks popularity among them. The website also reports that many within the House of Saud view bin Salman's operations in Yemen as 'reckless, dangerous, and highly unethical', and the Saudi National Guard opposes these operations. The National Guard is controlled by the Shammar tribe of the Al Saud family, whose leaders are critics of bin Salman and potential pillars of 'discontent' against his rule. On Saturday, November 4, dozens of princes, high-ranking officials, military officers, businessmen, ministers, and Saudi billionaires were suddenly arrested by the 'Anti-Corruption Committee'. These arrests occurred just hours after the committee was formed by King Salman. Two sources told the Wall Street Journal that Saudi officials hope to seize $800 billion through these arrests, most of which is outside of Saudi Arabia. The Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reports that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil supplier, has faced a $200 billion budget deficit over the past three years, placing a heavy burden on the country's financial reserves. The American analytical news site 'Vox' connects these two issues, stating that Mohammed bin Salman aims to achieve two goals with the seizure of the assets of the arrested individuals: to 'refill' Saudi Arabia's financial reserves and simultaneously to present the country as 'cleansed' of financial corruption to attract more investment. In this context, Press TV, the English-language media of the Islamic Republic of Iran, reports that this action by Mohammed bin Salman has instead raised concerns among traders and investors, undermining the crown prince's plans to attract investment. Meanwhile, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported on November 20 that the global rating agency 'S&P' announced that the 'cleansings' of financial corruption in Saudi Arabia 'could make the country more attractive for investment', and because 'Saudi Arabia's outlook appears stable', the agency decided to maintain the investment risk rating of 'A-/A-2' for Saudi Arabia. The futuristic exhibition 'NEOM' in Saudi Arabia is part of Mohammed bin Salman's 'Vision 2030', unveiled 18 months ago, which pertains to the post-oil era for Saudi Arabia. According to this plan, by 2030, Saudi Arabia's economy should no longer depend on oil exports, self-driving cars should be commuting on the country's streets, and a super-modern city costing $500 billion should be built and inhabited on the Red Sea coast. This futuristic city and its economic zone are named 'NEOM' and are expected to extend into the territories of Jordan and Egypt. The necessary energy for this city and economic zone is planned to be fully supplied by wind and solar energy. According to Fox News, Mohammed bin Salman has initiated radical plans to reduce Saudi Arabia's dependence on oil revenue, intending to diversify the country's economic sectors to attract foreign investment and facilitate the sale of shares in the state oil company, Aramco. Jared Kushner, the 36-year-old son-in-law of the U.S. President and his senior advisor, who has been tasked with finding a breakthrough in the wall of Middle Eastern problems, especially regarding Israel and the Palestinians, has met with Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia three times in recent weeks. Jared Kushner, a columnist for the British newspaper The Guardian, wrote on November 19 that 'right after the meeting' between Kushner and bin Salman, 'three things happened: Salman purged his wealthy royal rivals; he orchestrated a quiet coup in Lebanon; and Saudi armed forces closed Yemen's ports and airports.' Meanwhile, in recent days, some American officials told The New York Times that they were not informed about the discussions between Kushner and Salman. The Guardian columnist also writes that the U.S. Department of Defense and American diplomats have significant concerns regarding the 'strong connection' between Salman and Kushner. On the other hand, a source from the White House, who wished to remain anonymous, told The New York Times that Jared Kushner has fully briefed the State Department and the National Security Council on his meetings and discussions with the Saudi crown prince. Various media outlets have recently reported that advancing peace between Israel and the Palestinians is one of Mohammed bin Salman's goals, and there is speculation in the media that he hopes to reduce Iran's influence in this part of the Middle East by resolving this historical issue. Al Jazeera reports that Mohammed bin Salman's recent activities to advance Jared Kushner's plan regarding the Israel-Palestine issue may 'create smoke that will blind Mohammed bin Salman himself.' Al Jazeera states that advancing Kushner's plan means swimming against the public consensus among Arab and Muslim people in the region because, according to Al Jazeera, people in this region 'reject any normalization of relations with Israel without a solution that is fair and just for the Palestinians.' However, the American magazine The Atlantic comments that it does not harm the Palestinians to try Saudi Arabia's new path, and Mohammed bin Salman may be able to break the current deadlock, suggesting that the Palestinians should view this development as a potential opportunity rather than a harmful trend. An analyst close to the Saudi government stated in a recent roundtable discussion on Al Jazeera that Mohammed bin Salman has a 'long-term vision' for implementing all these mentioned matters and considers the Islamic Republic of Iran as an obstacle to progress in the Middle East. The Saudi crown prince himself stated in an interview with The Guardian that Iran's model for the Middle East is a radical and harmful one, and by asserting that the Iranian model has 'prevented' the Middle East from taking its 'true form', he pledged to 'bring moderate Islam back to the country.'