The Week: US-Saudi Alliance Must End

An old proverb suggests people are known by the company they keep, and that applies to countries, too. “There is no better demonstration of the moral and political rot at the heart of the American government than its increasingly poisonous alliance with Saudi Arabia,” writes Ryan Cooper for the Week. “Saudi Arabia is no friend of democracy, liberty, or even common decency.” Oil wealth combined with extremist religious views and a ruthless monarchy encourage corruption and brutal tendencies against Saudi critics and with the ongoing war in Yemen. The disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, assumed to be murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, won’t silence criticism of the Saudi regime. In spring of 2017, the US president announced $110 billion in proposed arms sales, but such sales require congressional approval and a bipartisan group of US senators have called for an investigation. Cooper warns that Saudis blatantly engage in brutality because they assume protection as a major US ally in the Middle East. – YaleGlobal