Saudi Arabia General

[oxmox 73]

How to deal with Saudi Arabia ? (n-tv.de TV news channel; 23th January 2015; translated)

The West must end his bigoted game.

It is a day for mild words: The leader of an important partner country has died. But the statements from the west are almost unbearable. There were far too many gentle words to Saudi Arabia.

Why do these words sound so offensive? "Its well-balanced and mediating policy in the Middle East has brought him and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia respect and recognition," Angela Merkel writes about King Abdullah. "With wisdom, foresight and great dedication he has advocated a cautious modernization of his country and stands for a dialogue between the Islamic world with the West." Barack Obama called Abdullah "sincere" and "courageous".

Of course, a German Chancellor or the President of the United States only found blandishements, if the head of state of an important allied country dies. Anything else would not be adequate for the date of death. Disreputable appeal these praises only as Merkel and Obama have never talked plaintext in times when it would have been appropriate.

The Federal Republic and the United States refuse for years an honest confrontation with the Saudi Arabian regime. Needless to say, they may now demonstrate compassion by Berlin and Washington. But after the death of Abdullah the fact remains that the West needs to change his dealings with Saudi Arabia fundamentally.

Torture, moralist, beheadings

In the kingdom just too much runs wrong. Torture in Saudi Arabia is an integral part of the judiciary. Just as beheadings. Women living in Saudi Arabia in the greatest oppression. That they are not allowed to drive, is the least of evils. There are only few States that implement a fundamentalist Islam so rigid in domestic politics as Saudi Arabia - moral watchdogs included. And so it is no wonder that many of the Salafists who join the jihad, got their basic ideological education in Saudi Arabia.

The West still never went so far for serious criticism. Not even when the regime thus began to whip the system-critical bloggers Raif Badawi. And yet the German Chancellor Angela Merkel had the best chance at the rally for "Charlie Hebdo" in Berlin. After all, it was about press freedom when it comes about the attack on the satire magazine. Instead, government spokesman George warrior expressed only on request in the federal press conference: "I can only give you the assessment to say that this is an appalling and unjustifiable punishment, it is an example that unfortunately a very different view about human rights exist, but we always talk about it at every opportunity. " Different views on human rights? Can it be? The word "torture" or "conviction" did not fall.

The reasons for the reluctance is obvious. The country is blessed with vast oil reserves and has thus not only some incredibly affluent citizens, but is a huge geopolitical player far beyond the region. More importantly, faced with growing alternatives to oil: The country is an important partner in the fight against Islamist terror. Externally, Saudi Arabia is also projecting itself more than ever as modern. The most recent example. The Saudi Deputy Foreign Minister Nizar bin Obaid Madani, who has no problem that his native intellectuals are be flogged, expressed in Paris solidarity with the subscribers of "Charlie Hebdo" and went for more press freedom on the road.

One can not be helped but to accuse the leadership of Saudi Arabia of bigotry. And that's what the US, Europe and Germany has to do aswell, or they are themselves not a whit better. The next opportunity for this is very close: In the beginning of March Minister Sigmar Gabriel visits the kingdom. He may occur not only as an economy minister there.

http://www.n-tv.de/politik/Der-Westen-muss-sein-bigottes-Spiel-beenden-article14379511.html

Edited January 24, 2015 by oxmox

[negah 26]

Well he was a good dictator after all.

I mean torturing and all that stuff is pretty common everywhere, and if our democratic standards dont allow it, we just create a concentration camp somewhere else where we dont really see it and can torture there too and everyone in our country is safe and happy.

Oh and as mentioned, torture is part of their law, so no need for concerns. I mean as long as we are friends with them.

And here we get to the most important point: he was our ally, he was buying our tanks, so no need for harsch words.

Rest in peace, good dictator.

[sudayev 27]

Crime and punishment comparison between IS & Saudi Arabia. Not many differences.

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user3303/imageroot/2015/01/20150123_saudi_0.jpg

[Arma3goodCPUlowFPS 12]

German news wrote:

He was the most important ally in the fight against terror

LOOOOL! he was the one who helped together with EU, NATO, USA, Qatar, Turkey and other gulf states to create several terror groups like al-qaeda, IS, FSA, NTC rebels, Al-Nusra, taliban etc and helped them with weapons and money to destabilize several countries, including anti-imperialist countries like syria (not counting libya anymore since they success overthrow gaddafi and placed a puppet regime there).

king abdullah was one of the biggest terrorist.

[TheMightyKovacs 6]

I 100% could be wrong, but I believe it was Pakistan that created the Taliban during the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan during the 80's.

[HotShot 0]

I'm not sure if you can get it outside the UK, but here's an interesting documentary which although is on a seperate issue, talks a lot about the rise of Saudi Arabia and its influence on word affairs since the 50s, and today:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p02gyz6b/adam-curtis-bitter-lake

[oxmox 73]

Saudi Arabia’s Plan to Extend the Age of Oil

The biggest exporter has let prices plummet—delaying the day when climate concerns, efficiency, and fuel

switching break the world’s dependence on crude.

Ali al-Naimi, Saudi Arabia’s petroleum minister and the world’s de facto energy czar.....

He told his OPEC counterparts they should maintain output to protect market share from rising supplies of U.S. shale oil, which costs more to get out of the ground and thus becomes less viable as prices fall. In December, he said much the same thing in a press interview, arguing that it was “crooked logic†for low-cost producers such as Saudi Arabia to pump less to balance the market.

Supply was only half the calculus, though. While the new Saudi stance was being trumpeted as a war on shale, Naimi’s not-so-invisible hand pushing prices lower also addressed an even deeper Saudi fear: flagging long-term demand.

Naimi and other Saudi leaders have worried for years that climate change and high crude prices will boost energy efficiency, encourage renewables, and accelerate a switch to alternative fuels such as natural gas, especially in the emerging markets that they count on for growth.

They see how demand for the commodity that’s created the kingdom’s enormous wealth—and is still abundant beneath the desert sands—may be nearing its peak.

This isn’t something the petroleum minister discusses in depth in public, given global concern about carbon emissions and efforts to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. But Naimi acknowledges the trend.

Last week, in a speech in Riyadh, Naimi said Saudi Arabia would stand “firmly and resolutely†with others who oppose any attempt to marginalize oil consumption. “There are those who are trying to reach international agreements to limit the use of fossil fuel, and that will damage the interests of oil producers in the long-term,†he said.

U.S. State Department cables released by WikiLeaks show that the Saudis’ interest in prolonging the world’s dependence on oil dates back at least a decade.

“Saudi officials are very concerned that a climate change treaty would significantly reduce their income,†James Smith, the U.S. ambassador to Riyadh, wrote in a 2010 memo to U.S.

Peak Oil

In 2005, when a book by oil analyst Matthew Simmons predicted a drop-off in Saudi output would signal that global supplies were beginning an irreversible decline, Naimi belittled the claims and promised higher production capacity. He won the argument. The Saudis pump more today than a decade ago.

More efficient autos and factories reduced the overall oil intensity of China’s economy—oil burned per unit of GDP—by 18 percent from 2008 to 2014.

Other classified cables released by WikiLeaks described the Saudis as “obstructionist†and “schizophrenic†on curbing climate change—launching solar and carbon-sequestration projects at home while impeding multilateral talks abroad. “Part of the explanation for this schizophrenic position is that the Saudi Government has not yet thought through all the implications of a climate change agreement, in part because it may not fully understand the various demand scenarios,†Smith wrote after the 2009 U.N. climate change conference in Copenhagen.

very long news report:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-12/saudi-arabia-s-plan-to-extend-the-age-of-oil

[.kju 3239]

If you are into that topic, post here: http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?190305-Limits-to-growth-peak-oil-peak-resources-peak-prosperity

[vilas 473]

indeed western relations with Saudi Arabia are hypocrisy, they accuse Iran for breaking all human rights and use this as argument against Iran, the same or worse happens in Saudi Arabia